Kozhikode Mayor Beena Philip has said that the corporation was willing to cooperate with the Indian Institute of Spices Research (IISR) for the proposed spice street project.
Inaugurating the foundation day programme online at the IISR here on Thursday, she said the emerging farming scenario enhanced the social and scientific relevance of institutions like ICAR- IISR in the wake of the pandemic.
She also emphasized that the spice economy was important for the farming sector. However, the ability to maintain and enhance spices production needs to be anchored on improved cultivation practices and research advances, she said.
Presiding over the session, Dr. A.K. Singh, Deputy Director-General, ICAR, New Delhi, said the spices sector had witnessed significant changes in the recent past, and that the country was poised to make gains in production and trade in spices in the coming years.
Dr. Athulya G. Ashokan, Associate Professor, Pushpagiri Institute of Medical Sciences, delivered the foundation day lecture on ‘Management of post-COVID syndrome’. The IISR also launched the e-commerce platform for sale of good quality spices from verified sources and products from incubatee entrepreneurs associated with the institute.
In a new initiative aimed at supporting women entrepreneurs, the institution has entered into an agreement with the Kozhikode District Kudumbashree Mission to provide support for development and marketing of value-added products, production of quality planting materials, and delivery training services.
The IISR also executed two technology commercialisation agreements for the turmeric variety IISR Aleppey Supreme and black pepper micronutrient mixture.
Marking the occasion, the institute conferred spices excellence awards on Kanthraj K.M. from Kodagu district in Karnataka and Rajesh E.M. from Kozhikode. R.L. Innovative Agri Pvt. Ltd., an agri-startup company, was also honoured with the award.
The staff recreation club of the institute donated 10 mobile phones and tablets to support online education of students from under-privileged sections as part of its outreach activities. The institute released five extension folders and three technical bulletins on various aspects of spice cultivation to mark the foundation day.
Dr. J. Rema, Director, ICAR-IISR, and Dr. Vikramadithya Pandey, Assistant Director General, ICAR, spoke.
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