Union Minister of State in PMO Dr Jitendra Singh will inaugurate the 4th Lavender festival to be organised by the CSIR-Indian Institute of Integrative Medicine (IIIM), Jammu at the Government Degree College (GDC), Bhaderwah, Doda, on June 6 and 7, 2026.
Director CSIR-IIIM Jammu Dr Zabeer Ahmed, while announcing it in a curtain raiser press conference at Institute complex, stated that the festival would be organised under the theme, “Lavender goes global”, celebrating the “continued success of the purple revolution and lavender-based rural entrepreneurship in J&K.”
Dr Ahmed said that through CSIR-Aroma Mission, a flagship programme of Union Ministry of Science and Technology, under the mentorship of Dr Jitendra Singh, Union Minister and Vice President CSIR, and guidance of Dr N Kalaiselvi, Director General CSIR and Secretary DSIR, Government of India, the CSIR-IIIM implemented Aroma Mission in J&K thus empowered the rural communities through lavender cultivation by engaging over 5,000 farmers and young entrepreneurs in remote areas, providing free Quality Planting Material (QPM), support in cultivation, processing, value addition, and marketing.
During the three phases of this mission completed, more than 50 fixed and mobile distillation units across J&K were installed to support local-level processing of lavender produce.
During the curtain raiser event, the web portal of “Lavender festival 2026” was launched and the Lavender festival brochure was also released.
The festival is being organised under the patronage of Dr N Kalaiselvi and overall supervision of Dr Zabeer Ahmed, assisted by his team of HoDs and scientists including Abdul Rahim, Dr Asha Chaubey, Dr Dhiraj Vyas, Dr Shashank Singh, Dr Sumit Gandhi, Dr Naveed Qazi, Dr Suphla Gupta, Dr Saurabh Saran, Kaushal Kumar, Dr Raj Kishore, Zahoor Wani, Rajesh Gupta and Ashok Kumar.
Dr Ahmed said that the “Lavender festival” emerged as a national platform showcasing the transformation brought by the CSIR-Aroma Mission in remote Himalayan regions, especially Bhaderwah, which had become a major lavender cultivation hub under the “Purple Revolution” initiative.
He said the 2026 festival would witness enthusiastic participation of scientists, startups, aroma industries, entrepreneurs, policymakers, agri-business stakeholders, students, progressive farmers and representatives of fragrance and wellness companies from across the country.
The Director said the event would feature startup exhibitions, live demonstrations, buyer-seller interactions, technical sessions, farmer-industry networking and displays of value-added lavender and aromatic products developed by local entrepreneurs and startups.
Highlighting the growing impact of the aroma sector, Dr Ahmed said CSIR-IIIM played a pioneering role in expanding lavender cultivation in Jammu and Kashmir Uttarakhand, north eastern states and Himachal Pradesh through scientific interventions, free quality planting material, distillation technologies, training and entrepreneurship support.
He said thousands of farmers and young entrepreneurs benefitted from lavender cultivation, while women-led enterprises and startups also emerged under the mission.
Dr Ahmed said, “The upcoming festival follows a series of precursor events organised to strengthen the aroma ecosystem and market linkages in the region.”
He referred to the recent aroma buyer-seller meet organised at the CSIR Innovation Complex, Mumbai, where leading aroma and perfumery companies interacted directly with lavender farmers, startups and entrepreneurs from J&K.
Earlier, another buyer–seller meet jointly organised by the Directorate of Ayush, J&K Medicinal Plants Board and CSIR-IIIM at Bhaderwah focused on strengthening the medicinal and aromatic plants sector through direct farmer-industry partnerships and contract farming initiatives.
He said those interactions laid the foundation for a stronger aroma-based economy in Jammu and Kashmir by connecting farmers with industries, startups and national markets.
Dr Ahmed said the Lavender festival 2026 aimed to further promote agri-based entrepreneurship, sustainable livelihoods and innovation in the aromatic crops sector.
He said several startups, farmer producer organisations, self-help groups and research institutions would showcase products related to essential oils, herbal wellness, floriculture, cosmetics, organic products and aroma technologies during the festival.
The event, according to him, will also include technical discussions on lavender cultivation, post-harvest management, essential oil extraction, branding, marketing and export opportunities.
Seeking wholehearted participation of people from different walks of life, Dr Ahmed said, “The festival is not only a celebration of lavender cultivation but also a movement towards transforming the rural economy of the Himalayan region through science-driven agriculture and entrepreneurship.”
He appealed to farmers, students, startups, researchers, industry representatives, media persons and members of civil society from J&K, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and across the country to attend the festival and witness the success story of the “Purple revolution in Bhaderwah.”
He also extended a special invitation to national and regional media organisations, journalists, digital content creators and documentary filmmakers to extensively cover the festival and highlight the transformation of the Himalayan rural economy through lavender cultivation and aroma-based entrepreneurship.
