New Delhi: The Centre on Saturday announced the list of Padma Awardees for this year on the eve of India’s 76th Republic Day. A total of 139 personalities from various fields were honoured with the award. Among them included 113 Padma Shri awardees, 19 Padma Bhushan awardees, and 7 Padma Vibhushan.
Among them included L Hangthing, a fruit farmer from Noklak district of Nagaland. He has been recognised for cultivating non-native fruits in his region for the last several years. , He has been honoured with the Padma Shri. The 58-year-old has over 30 years of experience in cultivating non-native fruits.
How Hangthing introduce non-native fruits in the region?
Announcing his name, the government on Saturday said that Hangthing not only introduced non-native fruit and vegetable saplings to his region but also shared his knowledge with more than 200 farmers across 40 villages of Nagaland.
Sharing further details about him, the government said that his love for fruits started in childhood when he decided to collect seeds of the fruits, which were thrown away by vendors or consumers. He used to collect them and experiment in the farmland of his family.
Hangthing farming techniques awarded by several households
Notably, his innovative farming techniques were adopted by over 400 households in the region. Through his efforts and hard work, Hangthing also helped thousands of farmers in 40 villages, to improve their incomes by introducing the cultivation of fruits like litchi and oranges, which are nonnative in the region.
Apart from him, other notable Padma awardees included singer Sharda Sinha (posthumously), Economist Bibek Debroy (posthumously), and R Ashwin (cricketer). While the government has announced the list of awardees today, the date on which the winners will be awarded by President Droupadi Murmu is yet to be decided.
