Bhaderwah: The Ministry of Science and Technology’s floriculture mission is opening new avenues of livelihood and economic independence for women in Sartingal village of Bhaderwah in Jammu and Kashmir’s Doda district, with commercial marigold cultivation emerging as a profitable venture.
Implemented through CSIR-Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine (IIIM), Jammu, the initiative has enabled women members of Self-Help Groups (SHGs) under the National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM) to cultivate marigolds on previously barren land, officials said.
Led by NRLM cluster coordinator Nadia Farooq, five women initially joined the initiative on a trial basis and have been selling flowers to suppliers in Jammu for the past one-and-a-half months. Encouraged by the results, 60 women have enrolled for marigold cultivation next year.
Farooq credited the mission for providing quality planting material and training in modern agricultural technologies, saying the initiative had encouraged more women to explore commercial floriculture as an income source.
Rizwana, a 21-year-old university student from Sartingal, said she assists her mother in cultivating, plucking and packaging flowers, and that the activity offers an additional source of income while requiring relatively less time.
Under the mission, CSIR-IIIM provides high-quality planting material, training and support in modern cultivation practices. It also promotes value addition through essential oil extraction, incense-stick making and dried-flower products to expand income opportunities.
Shahid Rasool Mian-Khel, nodal scientist for the Floriculture Mission, said CSIR-IIIM worked over the past five years to promote commercial floriculture as a means of income diversification, employment generation and rural development.
He said the initiative was particularly relevant for Doda, Ramban and the wider Chenab Valley, where difficult terrain, fragmented landholdings and limited livelihood options make locally adapted agricultural interventions essential.
The mission aims to complement traditional farming, improve the productive use of available land and strengthen rural livelihoods by connecting farmers with markets and value-addition opportunities.
