New hope for Sikkim farmers as young inventors develop cure for cardamom disease

After many years of struggle, farmers in Sikkim may finally find new hope for their cardamom crops. Once known for its thriving cardamom farming, Sikkim had suffered badly when an unknown disease started affecting the plants. Cardamom was one of the main sources of income for farmers, but when the disease spread, large plantations slowly became barren. Despite trying hard, farmers could not bring back the healthy cardamom crops they once had.

Some farmers kept growing cardamom in small areas, but the results were not good. They could not get the kind of yield they used to. It was during this difficult time that two young inventors from Raban, Karma Sherpa Bhutia and Bhawani Gurung, stepped in to find a solution.

Karma and Bhawani decided to send soil samples and cardamom plants from Sikkim to special laboratories outside the state. They wanted to find out exactly what was causing the problem. With the help of technologists, they worked hard and developed five biological medicines that target the viruses affecting cardamom.

About four to five months ago, they brought the medicine back to Sikkim and started testing it. The first trial took place on the farm of a local farmer named Krishna Bahadur Chettri at Famthang under Borong GPU in the Barfung constituency. At first, Chettri was unsure if it would work, but he still agreed to try it on his ‘Seremna’ variety of cardamom.

Slowly, the results started showing. New shoots began to grow from the cardamom plants. Chettri, who had been disappointed for many years, was filled with happiness. He thanked Karma and Bhawani, saying that it felt like poor farmers were finally seeing a new beginning.

According to the inventors and other farmers, Karma Sherpa Bhutia himself has a long background in cardamom farming. After facing many struggles with diseases, he decided to find a cure along with Bhawani Gurung. Together, their hard work has finally paid off.

Bhawani Gurung said that they did not only test the medicine on Chettri’s farm but also on other farms. Everywhere they tried, they saw positive results. This has given the farmers more confidence that the medicine can truly help revive cardamom farming.

For now, Karma and Bhawani have not shared the name of the laboratory where they did their tests. They have also kept the names of the medicines secret. They said they will launch the medicine officially at the right time with proper branding.