India today is earmarked by the world as one of the fastest developing countries with the potential to become a super power. The country has always been an agri-oriented country, with a surplus in food grain production due to the wide adaptation of new emerging technologies and methods in production. The economic growth and high-income elasticity for fruits, flowers, and vegetables will result in their greater demand. Analyzing this future need, the enterprising farmers and corporate houses have ventured into hi-tech horticulture enterprises namely the protected cultivation. The protected cultivation of flowers, vegetables and fruits is a widely practiced technology of temperate origin and has made its entry in the other parts of the world, where this technology is less known.

THE GENESIS

The advent of this new technology of protected cultivation of flowers, fruits, and vegetables in India in the early 90's, proved to be a slow starter due to the non-availability of sound technical support. Understanding the need for a fool proof technology in the present context of acute water scarcity, degraded soils, and fierce market competition, the technology of protected cultivation of horticultural crops serves a unique opportunity to the Indian farmers. To overcome this slow stride and rejuvenate the protected cultivation industry, an international standard advanced practical training center is established in the year 2002 by MSAMB under the umbrella of the National Institute of Post harvest Technology. This center caters to all the technical needs of the protected cultivation industry and horticulture in general, engaged in cultivation of flower, vegetable, and fruit crops. This center is named as the NIPHT's Horticulture Training Center (HTC).