UP’s first Flower Center of Excellence will be built in Pirkhauli, Ayodhya at a cost of Rs 2 crore. Here farmers will be given training in modern flower farming and supply of quality flowers for Ram temple will be ensured.
Ayodhya. Yogi Adityanath government is going to start a big project to promote flower cultivation in Ramnagari Ayodhya. Uttar Pradesh’s first ‘Centre of Excellence for Flowers’ will be established at a cost of Rs 2 crore on about three hectares of land in Pirkhauli area of Ayodhya. This center will become a major center for modern technical assistance and training for flower growers. Besides, regular supply of high quality flowers to Shri Ram temple will also be ensured from here.
Farmers will get training in modern flower farming
Deputy Director Horticulture Anoop Kumar Chaturvedi said that this project will prove to be a big step towards promoting modern flower farming in the state. At the centre, farmers will be given complete training related to information about improved species, scientific farming, pest management, irrigation technology and marketing. Many popular and rare varieties of Dutch Rose and high quality Marigold will be developed here. Yogi government is continuously working on the goal of increasing the income of farmers by strengthening the agriculture and horticulture sector. In this direction, it is being considered as the first big flower project of the state.
Such flower centers will also be built in Mathura and Varanasi.
According to officials, the construction work of this project will start soon. After this, Flower Centers of Excellence will also be established in Mathura and Varanasi on the same model. The aim of the government is to create a strong network of flower production in the entire state, so that farmers can get new employment and income opportunities.
Focus on increasing farmers’ income from flower farming
This project will increase awareness about flower farming among local farmers. At present most of the farmers are dependent on traditional farming, but now they will be able to earn better profits by adopting flower farming. This center will not be limited to flower production only, but will also promote possibilities like dry flowers, processing and export. This will provide an opportunity to local farmers to connect with the national and international markets.
Ram temple will get quality flowers locally
The Shri Ram temple in Ayodhya requires a large quantity of flowers every day. In such a situation, this center will play an important role in providing high quality flowers locally to the temple. This will reduce dependence on importing flowers from outside and will also strengthen the local economy.
Youth and women will get employment opportunities
The construction and operation of the Flower Center of Excellence is likely to provide direct and indirect employment to hundreds of youth and women. Participation of local people will increase in works like flower harvesting, packaging, transportation and marketing. This project is being considered an important step towards strengthening the vision of self-reliant Uttar Pradesh.
Flower center will be equipped with modern technology
The Horticulture Department is preparing the outline of this entire project. Officials said that state-of-the-art facilities like modern greenhouse, drip irrigation, solar power and tissue culture lab will be developed in the centre. Farmers will be able to get direct advice from experts here and gain knowledge about modern techniques to get better market prices.
Agricultural diversification and religious tourism will get a boost
This initiative can prove to be a big change not only for Ayodhya but for the agriculture sector of entire Uttar Pradesh. Yogi government is preparing a model of overall development by combining agricultural diversification, farmer welfare and religious tourism. This flower center of Pirkhauli is being considered an important example of this model.