Central team to visit Mizoram to study "Mautam"

Aizawl, May 27 (UNI) A 10-member inter-ministerial Central team is expected to visit Mizoram shortly to study the causes and affect of bamboo flowering or ''Mautam,''.

State chief secretary Haukhum Hauzel had convened a meeting of concerned officials yesterday and discussed about the bamboo flowering, which is seen by the locals as bad omen for impending famine.

Chief Minister Zoramthanga recently called on Agriculture minister Sharad Pawar, who said a Central team would visit Mizoram to get a first-hand knowledge of the Mautam situation there.

The bugbear of the last Mautam-famine, which occurred fifty years ago may not be the experience of the people this time.

Due to funds sponsored by the Centre for implementation of the mautam-related projects, there had been no report of scarcity of food so far.

It has been predicted from past experience of bamboo flowering that rats and insects would cause extensive damage to standing crops, especially paddy in 2007.

Most cultivators were not keen to grow paddy this year because of rodents' threat. The state government on its part encouraged the people to grow turmeric on commercial scale.

Turmeric, for one is deemed to be a non-edible item for rats.

UNI