especially in the rural areas, to
pursue it as means to a sustainable
livelihood. ‘Tourist inflow, both
domestic and international,
has increased from 4.04 lakh in
2006 to 8.39 lakh till last year,
according to the latest statistics
from the tourism department.
Hence, promoting eco-tourism
is necessary,’ stated CM Conrad
Sangma.
Potential for Entrepreneurship
& Research
N Rao, retired director of
the Centre for Orchid Gene
Conservation of Eastern
Himalayan Region in Manipur,
will make it to the record books
for discovering 35 new species of
orchids, the maximum number
discovered by an individual in the
country. ‘All the discoveries are
new to the science of orchids in the
world and will help enhance the
medicinal and floral value of these
fine blooms from India.’ Out of the
35, twenty were discovered by Rao
individually and 15 discoveries
were made in conjunction with
others. Also, all the new finds were
from Northeastern Himalayas.
‘The orchidarium will help give a
boost to the study of orchids, for
botanists and wildlife researchers
of the region,’ shared Rao.
‘The exclusive orchidarium
will also lead to the production
of orchids in large quantities,
with a proper supply chain which
will, in turn, open paths for new
business avenues. Such largeproduce with a proper supply
chain, can earn a decent income,
very much like farmers in other
parts of the world,’ added Chiang.
He shared that the temperature
and climatic conditions of the
region are favourable for orchids
to thrive, and so, it is essential to
look into orchid farming for mass
production. Of late, the use of
orchids has increased manifold for
its medicinal value.
It is expected that the
establishment will go a long way
to educate people about these
exotic plants and help preserve the
ecosystem of the region.