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SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH CENTRE
Since its inception, the centre has been working on a myriad spectrum of areas including organic cultivation of Chili, turmeric, pineapple, lemongrass etc. Essential oil distillation of aromatic plants viz., lemongrass, citronella, value addition of pineapple, castor, chili, invitro propagation of medicinal plants, production of lemongrass tea, soap making, candy making, documentation of traditional ecological knowledge, training and demonstration on various sustainable activities for empowering rural poor, among others.
Tissue Culture
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Micropropagation of economically important aromatic and medicinal plants are being carried out at SDRC. This will help in conservation and economic utilisation of these potent plants. Medicinal plants serve both as a source of affordable healthcare (80%) and a source of income accounting to 30% of the total income of poorer households.
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Documentation of Traditional Ecological Knowledge
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Since antiquity, man utilized plants as a source of medicine to ward off diseases or relieving suffering for millennia. These plant resources have been evaluated and maneuvered especially by indigenous tribal communities whose lifestyle is very closely interrelated with nature. This traditional knowledge system is derived from the web of interactions between humans, plants, animals, natural forces, and land forms.
The knowledge on traditional medicinal plants usage is also subjected to loss since it has mainly been stored in the memories of elderly peoples and handed down mostly by word of mouth for successive generations. Disinterest among the younger generations further enhances this vulnerability of traditional knowledge as they tend to leave ancestral practices behind refocusing their interests on treatments offered by modern medicine. Overtime, ethnomedicinal knowledge has been undermined by mortality of resource persons, inadequate scientific research and poor documentation.
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Processing of fruits and vegetables
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Processing of fruits and vegetables is very important to produce products for direct consumption and as food ingredients. During processing, the main objectives are to preserve the color, flavor, texture, and nutrition while prolonging the shelf life of perishable fruits and vegetables. Processing of fruits and vegetables are being carried out to make value added products using locally available raw materials
Common facility centre
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Common facility centre has been set up for processing and value addition of agro-based products. The centre is equipped with processing machineries for helping the rural poor. Machineries are made available to the farmers to convert their raw materials into finished marketable product.
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Organic growers' club
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Organic growers club has also been formed by SDRC to promote organic cultivation in the state. Awareness programme are being carried out to encourage farmers to adopt organic strategies for farming
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Training on soap making
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Soap is a salt of a fatty acid used in a variety of cleansing and lubricating products. In a domestic setting, soaps are usually used for washing, bathing, and other types of housekeeping. In industry, soaps are used as thickeners, components of some lubricants, and precursors to catalysts. Soap is created by mixing fats and oils with a base, as opposed to detergent which is created by combining chemical compounds in a mixer. Various training were provided to rural people on manufacturing of soap.
Training on fruit candy
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Various training programme on fruit candy making were given to rural unemployed youths to empower them with sustainable skills so as to create avenues for self employment.
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Low-cost dryer
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A prototype model of a simple low-cost dehydrator consisting of a chamber with trays, a heat blower, an air vent, was developed by our team, specially designed for rural areas.
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