JORHAT, Feb 17 - The concluding programme of the All India Coordinated Research Project�s 6th Group Discussion on Fruits was held at the Assam Agricultural University here yesterday.
Presiding over the function, the Vice-Chancellor of Assam Agricultural University Dr KM Bujarbaruah lauded the significant increase in production of horticultural crops in the country during the past two years and expressed concern over the almost 30 per cent post-harvest losses sustained.
He said that a survey should be carried out to find out advancement of AICRP on fruit productivity and also about the outcome of farmers� own efforts in this regard.
�In Assam, the farmers have taken up growing apple berry, indigenous to Thailand, on their own in order to supplement their income,� Dr Bujarbaruah pointed out.
The Vice-Chancellor also referred to an area near the AAU campus here named Lichubari, and mentioned that today no litchi trees are found in the said area.
He called for efforts to rejuvenate the soil and environmental factors at Lichubari so as to make it conducive for the growth of litchis.
The litchis of Tezpur were in no way inferior to those of Bihar, and should therefore be grown on a commercial scale, Dr Bujarbaruah suggested.
Dr Prakash Patil, Project Coordinator (Fruits), ICAR, IIHR, Bengaluru, and Dr WS Dillon, Assistant Director General (Horticultural Sciences II, ICAR, New Delhi) were among those who spoke on the occasion.
Earlier, the Deputy Director-General (Horticultural Science), ICAR, New Delhi, inaugurated the function.
