This neem product’ lies rotting in cans

Bal Chitrawani had made the short film in Narayangaon and a soap factory at Pune in 1996-97 to be viewed by children in the age group 5 – 11 years. The films produced by Bal Chitrawani are telecast in the slot 10.30 – 11 a.m. on all week days. The film concentrated on the theme of what neem was really all about’ and provided information on its multi-purpose use.

Ketkar whose Neem Mission is a virtually a single-handed effort at spreading information on the versatility of the neem and has been associated in the making of nearly 10-odd films for broadcasting corporations in Canada, Germany and other countries, fumes at the shoddy treatment given to the important subject.

The major applications for neem by-products are in the soap, cosmetics, pharmaceutical, insecticide, manure and contraceptive industries, apart from its use in skin diseases and even diabetes. Neem cake when coated over urea saved expensive nitrogen without affecting the yield apart from the neem-based products also revolutionising the concept of pest control.

While Ketkar rues the lack of importance shown to such subjects, when contacted, producer at Bal Chitrawani Gauri Taware, said that it was not a film, but a video programme. There were problems with the editing and it was a complicated programme, admits Taware who assured that the programme would be soon telecast by June.