Dimapur: The Nagaland Bio-Resource Mission flagged off its first consignment of Zanthoxylum (michinga/tomar) seeds to a private company’s northeast unit at Tezpur in Assam from the State Institute of Rural Development (SIRD) in Kohima on Saturday, marking a milestone in the commercialisation of Nagaland’s bio-resources.Chief secretary Sentiyanger Imchen flagged off the consignment in the presence of senior officials from the New Delhi private firm, representatives from the state govt, entrepreneurs and framers.Speaking at the event, Imchen said Nagaland has tremendous potential in medicinal plants and herbs. He said the Nagaland Bio-Resource Mission was formed to optimise and realise this economic value, adding that over the past decade, the mission has catalogued medicinal and aromatic plants across the state, which was a critical step towards commercialisation.Commending the team for taking the initiative forward through the MoU signed with the private company under a buy-back arrangement, Imchen said Zanthoxylum is widely grown and consumed across Nagaland. Since the crop is already partially commercialised within the state, he said it has strong potential for scaled commercial trade.
