Our Correspondent
Kohima, Nov. 14 (EMN): Advisor for Horticulture Mhathung Yanthan believes that the ‘subsidy culture’ is a phenomenon relevant to most of the Naga people.
It is time to learn how to be resilient and learn how to ‘produce to feed ourselves,’ he said at a skill development programme that was conducted in the capital town Kohima.
‘We are depending too much on the government. We want everything free from the government and that subsidiary culture is still very relevant in us,’ said Yanthan at the two-day training programme on skill development on floral arrangement and design, and home scale preservation. The training programme was conducted on November 14 in the directorate of Horticulture in Kohima.
172 trainees from the districts of Kohima, Dimapur, Peren, Wokha, Phek, Tuensang, Longleng, Kiphire, Mon, Zunheboto and Mokokchung attended the programme.
Yanthan urged the youngsters to give interest to farming and agriculture. ‘We have to stand on our own. Education is not only about finding a government job,’ he said.
He narrated to the students the economic culture of advanced and developed countries: ‘People there do not look for government jobs but keep it as a second option and they are job-givers rather than job-takers.’
“In Nagaland, we make government jobs as our ultimate aim,” the legislator said. ‘Government jobs are now very hard to get. In a small state like Nagaland, so many people are employed and there is hardly any revenue. We do not produce anything and all the development revenue is spent on salary,’ he lamented.
‘We have such great potential for agriculture and horticulture as we are gifted with rich soil and have enough resources.’
The legislator suggested that ‘we should produce to feed ourselves sufficiently and also to sell or preserve as we are importing so much food from the outside.’ He assured that whatever assistance is required will be provided for, but “You have to be sincere, hard working and truthful to yourself, which is what we are lacking in,” he added.
Talking about skills in floral arrangements, Yanthan said the art of flowers arrangement is an important visual aesthetic element. Florists and flowers are much in demand. Every function and occasion is incomplete without flowers, he said.
He expressed confidence that through the training programme and by learning the art of food preservation and flower arrangements, ‘you can meet your livelihood as so many opportunities are there within.’
Also, addressing the event was R Elithung Lotha, director for Horticulture. He said, ‘We must understand we use lots of various flowers for different kinds of occasions and places.’
‘This training will give knowledge about how to arrange flowers for different occasions as each flower and their colours convey different meanings and messages. Learn and practice in your daily lives and also pass it to others for the society to progress in this area,’ he suggested.
Rokolhou Keditsu, the resource person for the training event, said there is change in the living standards of the society due to globalization.
“I want our people to come up in the florist industries,” she said. She urged against artificial flowers so as to boost the economy of local farmers.
‘In our society we have the notion that flowers are associated with women but that is wrong. Even the gentlemen should come up in this field. Outside the state, the flower arrangers are mostly expert men,’ Keditsu added.
The training programme will culminate on November 15. Keditsu and Meyasahi are the two resource persons for the training programme.
