N Rangasamy calls for innovative practices in the farm sector

PUDUCHERRY: Chief Minister N Rangasamy has called for innovative practices in the farm sector and stressed that dynamic research was also necessary to meet the emerging challenges in agriculture.

Felicitating 65-year-old horticulturist and florist T Venkatapathy Reddiar, a Padma Shree awardee here yesterday, he said progressive ideas, innovative practices and newer designs are necessary to meet challenges in the farm sector.

Reddiar bagged the award for innovative practices in raising crossandra and disease resistant casuarinas at his lab `Lakshminarayana Crossandra Innovative Centre' at nearby Koodapakkam village.

A new variety of the flower he had developed was christened `Abdul Kalam crossandra`. A casuarina species he developed had been named `Rangasamy casuarina`.