Guwahati: Tulsi considered as a holy plant is now being cultivated in parts of Assam for commercial purposes to extract high value of Tulsi (Basi) oil which could cost around Rs 1200 per litre in the international markets.

The Assam Rural Infrastructure and Agricultural Services (ARIAS) society under Assam Agri-Business and Rural Transformation Project (APART) is working on the cultivation of Tulsi plant across 7 districts of Assam.

The Holy Basil Leaf (Tulsi) generally present in Indian homes for worshipping.

More than 21 bighas of land in Kochugaon of Kokrajhar District of Assam is planned for cultivation to produce Tulsi oil-which is in high demand in the markets. Initially, 2 bighas of land were selected.

A senior official of ARIAS told BNE that plans are on to increase the cultivation through Farmers Producers Organisation (FPO) for a trial run.

Farmer’s Interest Groups (FIGs) are formed to operationalize the project.

Each FIG consisted of 20 members.

The cultivation of Tulsi plant on a mass scale has started to reap benefits as farmers have got an alternative source of income by utilizing their fallow land.

The oil extracted from Tulsi leaves could be used for pharmaceuticals, herbal tea, cosmetics, making honey, etc.
Initially, under the project cultivation was started at 2 bigha land in Kokrajhar. Out of that 1500 kg of tulsi leaf was plucked.

From it, 5.8 litre of oil was extracted in the oil extracted unit in Rajnadabri. The oil has been tested in the quality testing lab for its quality.

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