ITANAGAR, 9 Oct: The State Forest Research Institute (SFRI) organised a two-day national workshop on the orchids of Arunachal Pradesh, themed 'Taxonomy, Micropropagation, Conservation, Distribution, Ex-Situ Breeding & Emerging Opportunities', to promote awareness and knowledge-sharing on the rich orchid diversity of Arunachal, focusing on research, conservation, sustainable cultivation and emerging opportunities.
Attending the inaugural session on 7 October, PCCF Santosh Kumar and Arunachal Pradesh Biodiversity Board (APBB) Chairman Hawa Bagang highlighted the importance of biodiversity conservation and the need to protect the state's rich natural heritage.
SFRI Director HB Abo, who is also the member secretary of the APBB, spoke about the state's rich orchid diversity and the importance of organising such workshops to promote awareness, research and conservation of orchids in the state.
The technical sessions featured presentations and discussions by eminent orchid experts, covering orchid diversity, taxonomy, distribution, conservation, propagation, ex situ breeding, sustainable cultivation and emerging opportunities.
As part of the programme, participants comprising students, researchers and other stakeholders visited the Orchid Research Centre in Tippi and the Sessa Orchid Sanctuary in West Kameng district, where they got an opportunity to observe orchid-related research and conservation efforts, furthering their understanding of orchid diversity and conservation in Arunachal.
The resource persons included Orchid Society of India secretary Prof Promila Pathak, researcher Ashis Kumar Roy from West Bengal, Dr Krishna Chowlu from the Botanical Survey of India, Dr RK Taj, Dr LR Bhuyan, Dr Jambey Tsering, Dr Ona Apang from the SFRI, and Dr Paromita Ghosh from GB Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment.
The workshop was organised in collaboration with the APBB, Botanical Survey of India, Regional Centre, Itanagar, and GB Pant National Institute of Himalayan Environment.
