PRESIDENT HARVESTS AND DISTILLS HERBS AND PLANTS PEEPAL SAPLING FROM BODH GAYA

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The President of India, Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam and a group of scientists and academicians harvested and distilled the Palmarosa (Cymbopogon martinii) herbal plant which is commonly known as Rosha ghas or Ginger grass at the Rashtrapati Bhavan Herbal Garden here today. This herb is used for medicinal purposes and in the perfumery, cosmetics and flavouring industries.

A permanent distillation plant with a distillation capacity of 50 kilograms at a time has been set-up near the Herbal Gardens with the assistance of the Central Institute of Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (CIMAP). The Herbal Garden and the distillation plant have been set-up with the purpose of making the common person and students aware of India’s huge potential for herbal plants and their exports, because of its diverse and large bio-diversity.

Later the President planted a peepal sapling from Bodh Gaya. Dr. Kalam had received the sapling from the monks of the Mahabodhi Temple at Bodh Gaya during his visit to Bihar last week.

The scientists and academicians present on the occasion were the Member Planning Commission Dr. D.N. Tiwari, the Director-General of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Reasearch (CSIR), the Vice-Chancellors of the Punjab Agriculture University and the Gobind Ballabh Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Director of CIMAP, professors from the Chaudhary Charan Singh Agricultural University, Hisar and a representative of the Uttar Pradesh Terai Development Authority.