Photo Courtesy: nenow
Kohima: The Nagaland Department of Environment, Forest and Climate Change inked a formal agreement with the Jorhat-based Rain Forest Research Institute on August 1. Principal Secretary Y. Kikheto Sema and Director Dr. Nitin Kulkarni signed the deal at the Forest Office Complex in Dimapur. The partnership follows the May 6 Cabinet approval of the Nagaland Agarwood Policy.
Nagaland currently holds a meager 2 percent share of India’s agarwood market. Assam claims 80 percent, while Tripura holds 15 percent. Local farmers previously struggled because traders from outside the state bypassed local systems to extract resources. Sema noted the shift in control. “Because we lacked a policy, people from Assam would come and take our Agarwood away,” Sema said.
This initiative moves beyond basic cultivation. The state plans to implement systematic soil testing, sapling distribution, and rigorous farmer training. The program integrates RFRI’s Sashi Inoculation technology, which boasts a success rate exceeding 90 percent. Officials intend to eliminate expensive, unregulated private inoculation services.
Economic stakes are high. Agarwood farming could yield 40 to 50 times the revenue of traditional jhum cultivation. Future phases include building state-based processing units and potentially expanding the partnership to include clonal teak that matures in 20 years. Chief Conservator of Forests Sidramappa Chalkapure confirmed the collaboration follows directives from Union Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Kirti Vardhan Singh.
The agreement covers bamboo, teak, and broad forestry management. Researchers will survey existing resource quality and distribution. The goal is to provide sustainable livelihoods across the state. This is a long-term play. It focuses on research, technology, and market stability.
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