About the Directorate
Introduction
The agro-climatic zones of Meghalaya facilitate production of a large number of diverse fruits and vegetables. Most of our agricultural commodities are amenable for further processing into various intermediary and finished products that can fetch better value to the farmers and processors. The present institutional mechanism for value addition is barely adequate. The full potential of the sector therefore, goes abegging.
Based on the 2015-16 data, the net sown area of Meghalaya is 3,43,431 ha which is just 15.27% of the total geographical area. There are at least four major crops that are grown in about 10000 ha each, in our state, namely: – Potato, Mandarin Orange, Pineapple, and Ginger. There is also an exclusive niche market for Lakadong Turmeric.
This is where the proposal for creating the Directorate of Food Processing came into being and the Government of Meghalaya had created a new Directorate of Food Processing under the Department of Agriculture in May 2018.
Directorate Structure
The Directorate is presently headed by the Officer on Special Duty(OSD)and one (1) Horticulture Development Officer (HDO), they look into the various activities relating to Food Processing in the state, be it agriculture based, or horticulture based, or plantation crop based. Besides this, five (5) Technical Associates had been appointed to cater to the needs of subject specific activities, and other office staffs who facilitate the day-to-day working of the directorate.
|
Name |
Designation |
Station |
Phone |
Mobile |
E- Mail |
|
Mr. Maqbool Lyngdoh Suiam |
Officer on Special Duty |
Shillong |
0364-2951132 |
9436103899 |
shasaw@gmail.com |
|
Mr. Defenderson Shadap |
Assistant Director of Horticulture(FP) |
Shillong |
|
9436107189 |
desha09@gmail.com |
|
Smti. Babli N. Sangma |
Assistant Director of Horticulture(FP) |
Dainadubi |
|
7005423938 |
bablins1964@gmail.com/adh.dainadubi@gmail.com |
|
Dr. Dombewarisa S.Marak |
Horticulture Development Officer(FP) |
Shillong |
|
7005116018 |
warisa.aau36@gmail.com |
|
Dr.Charis Ripnar Kharkongor |
Technical Associate-II |
Shillong |
|
8787786016 |
charisripnar2016@gmail.com |
|
P. Mariadon S Pathaw |
Technical Associate-II |
Shillong |
|
8402048301 |
mariadon@rediffmail.com |
|
Danme C. M. Sangma |
Technical Associate-III |
Shillong |
|
8787598518 |
danmesangma@gmail.com |
|
Ribhahun Khonglah |
Technical Associate-III |
Shillong |
|
9366738062 |
khonglahribhahun@gmail.com |
Our Mission
- It aims at bridging the gap between agricultural value-chain. This is essential to help farmers getting remunerative prices to their produce and also become entrepreneurs in the process and thereby leading to employment generation in this sector.
- It strives to develop entrepreneurship in the state, the Directorate creates a network with academic, research and technology dispensing institutions of the country connected to Food Processing sector, viz., the CFTRI, Mysore, the CIPHET, Ludhiana, etc.
- The directorate aims at creating academic opportunities for the youth by way of having them admitted in certificate, diploma or degree granting programmes in the state, or elsewhere in the country.
- The Directorate makes all possible efforts to expand the market for the processed products, by way of organizing festivals, and participating in exhibitions and expositions in and outside the state periodically.
- The Directorate will source technologies from various research and technology generating organizations and to induct the most appropriate crop-specific processing technologies in the state, to make processing low-scale, decentralized and people-centric activity.
- The Directorate will adopt a geographical crop cluster approach for creating sufficient scale in the processing opportunities and develop common facilities in the cluster hubs.