Shillong, Dec 20: The residents of Shillong city relish the taste and experience a distinct variety of local oranges which were showcased at the Orange festival 2013 organized by the government of Meghalaya, East Khasi Hills District Arts and Culture society in collaboration with the District Horticulture office, East Khasi Hills Shillong, Synjuk Development SHG Nongsteng, Riti Academy of Visual Arts and the Meghalaya Rural Development Society at State Central Library premises, Shillong.
As the winter sets in, the love for Orange grows deeper. The orange lovers of the state gets an opportunity to test the best Khasi Mandarin Oranges in the Orange Festival.
During the festival, the farmers also get an opportunity to interact with experts who will provide a better hand knowledge on the production of oranges to the farmers.
The festival assumes significance in view of the fact that the oranges of Meghalaya have a huge scope of exporting oranges to different parts of the country.
Addressing the inaugural function of the festival, Director OF Agriculture KM Brahma asked the orange producers to utilise the opportunity of festival and exhibit their best products for the customers. He stated that the department of agriculture is taking every possible step to help the orange producers of the state.
Riti Academy of Visual Arts chairman, Raphael Warjri while talking to newsmen said that Khasi Mandarin are the best oranges and this festival provides an opportunity to orange producers to directly sell their products to buyers without any interference of middleman
More than forty stalls were put up in the orange festival which is annual event in the state.
The orange festival also laid emphasis on value addition of the fruit. Products made out of orange include orange juice, orange peel which is used by gardeners as a slug repellent, orange leaves which can be boiled to make a beverage. Jams can also be made out of the orange fruit. The peel of the orange is used in traditional Chinese medicine, and also to treat abdominal distention, enhance digestion, and to reduce phlegm.
To promote the Khasi Mandarin Orange, one of the best citrus fruits in the world -the State Government, through the District Horticulture Department is organised this festival to showcase the fruits produced by the farmers.
With a purpose to upscale the market and provide the orange producers the opportunities they deserve, interaction between the farmers and the experts was encouraged. The line of conversation circles around three things – Protection, Production and Markets.(SP News)
