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Stop exporting medicinal plants, exhorts Jairam

Staff Correspondent

`India should start offering quality herbal products in next 5 years'

DEHRA DUN: The Round Table Conference on Medicinal Plants and Herbal Products - Livelihood and Trade Options got under way on Friday with the Union Minister of State for Commerce, Jairam Ramesh calling upon the participants, scientists, farmers and stake holders to resolve to ensure that India stopped exporting medicinal plants and began offering quality herbal medical and other products to the world within the next five years.

"By export orientation in the herbal field I do not mean mere earning of dollars but value addition to the produce and creation of jobs for the masses," he said adding that at present 60 percent of the herbal export was in the form of plants. This is a sad scenario and we can reverse it to near cent percent export of herbal goods through an integrated package that promoted use of the best of science, technology, innovation and enterprise by all, he said.

India has the resources and skills to make it's presence felt in the world and the policy makers, implementing agencies including the small landless farmer will have to be sensitised and channelised to achieve this goal, he said.

Mr Ramesh wanted equal emphasis on promotion of use of herbal medicines and other products in the domestic market that was too big to be ignored.

He wanted the promotion of herbs culture on the lines of the National Dairy Development Board so that every stake holder- landless farmer upwards became a profit earning partner in the effort.

The Uttaranchal Chief Minister, Narayan Dutt Tiwari felt that holding of the round table in Uttaranchal was significant as this was the Dev Bhumi (the Land of the Gods).

He wanted everyone to collaborate to make herbal activity a high quality effort. To achieve this you will have to demolish the barriers within different organizations- Government or private, he said.

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Stop exporting medicinal plants, exhorts Jairam

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