Bhubaneswar, Oct. 16: With the early onset of winters, scores of people are thronging the floriculture market at Unit-II Daily Market.
The night temperature has been witnessing a drop in several parts of the state over the past three days, which is an indication of the arrival of the winters.
"The night temperature is likely to drop further in the coming days," said regional director of Indian Meteorological Department, Bhubaneswar, Sarat Chandra Sahu. He further said clear sky and change in wind direction from south and south-easterly to northerly were responsible for the drop in night temperature across the state. The temperature has already dropped two to three degrees Celsius below normal, he said.
The winter season is good for growing saplings, such as bougainvillea and hibiscus, at home. The floriculture market complex at Unit-II has varieties of flowers, saplings, seeds, urea and fertilisers. The market enables the farmers to sell flowers directly to customers. Flower traders have for long been seeking an organised market for selling their produce directly to consumers. Flowers worth more than Rs 2 lakh is sold across Bhubaneswar daily for various rituals and occasions, said a trader.
Gayadhar Jena, 45, another trader, said that an organised floriculture market was needed in the city to cater to the growing demand of flowers. He added that several farmers from Bhusanpur, about 50 kilometres from the capital city, would be able to utilise the facility to sell their produce directly to customers with the help of the market. Manoranjan Behera, 57, a member of the Bhubaneswar Flower Vendors' Association, said the market complex would serve the interests of buyers and sellers. "Farmers in floriculture should utilise the facility for expanding their business. Floriculture is an emerging sector and has a lot of scope," he said.
There are about 2,000 florists in the city. Shantanu Agrawal, 52, a businessman from Rasulgarh, said the winters were great for growing flowers at home. "The price of flowers in the market is comparatively lower than in the branded flower shops", he said. BDA vice-chairman Krishan Kumar said the floriculture market complex was aimed to provide farmers a platform to sell their produce to consumers. This apart, the development authority will soon set up a kitchen garden sale centre at Khandagiri and canning centre at Ekamra Kanan farm, he said.
The kitchen garden sale centre will be utilised for growing fruits, vegetables and flowers on over one acre at Khandagiri. The canning centre at Ekamra Kaman farm will be utilised for packaging fruits, juices, etc. The facility will be beneficial for farmers who wish to expand their business. According to Kumar, the BDA has informed the horticulture department about the projects that will be completed within six months. The decision to set up the facilities was taken at a meeting by agriculture minister Pradeep Maharathy.
