Kaji Nemu

The kaji nemu, one of the most exclusive species of lemon that grows in Assam, has suddenly resorted to playing the vanishing trick. This has caused a massive uproar and resentment across Assam and has become the prime topic of discussion, be it on the dining table of every Assamese household, or in the market. The issue of the missing kaji nemu has also figured in discussions in the ongoing budget session of the Assam Legislative Assembly, and rightfully so. After all, the disappearance of the kaji nemu has jeopardized the monthly budget of every Assamese household. This is because, "kaliyei howk ba aji/ xodai khaba kaji" (yesterday or today, have kaji nemu every day)! No lunch or dinner in any household in Assam is complete without a piece of the dear old kaji nemu. It is so inseparable from the Assamese cuisine and the culinary habits of the indigenous people of Assam that its permanent disappearance - God forbid - would probably also be tantamount to a direct threat to the identity and culture of Assam and all the indigenous Assamese communities. The kaji nemu belongs solely and exclusively to Assam; this has been proven by the fact that Assam had got a GI registration for this special lemon species in 2019. Scholars are silent on whether kaji nemu has any direct or indirect relationships with Kaziranga. It is also not known whether it has any relationship with the Assamese word 'kaji' which means a woman or damsel expert in weaving and spinning skills. But there is immense scope for exploring this by way of conducting a series of research projects, which in turn will earn several scholars the much-coveted PhD Degree. It is important to keep in mind that the kaji nemu is not just a must in a typical lunch or dinner of the Assamese. It is also widely used in beverages, apart from having a lot of medicinal value. While it was only last year that kaji nemu had hit the headlines when over several hundred quintals of the great Assam lemon was exported to the UK and a few other countries, with the average Assamese rejoicing over the apparent conviction that the state would soon become a global power in the lemon economy. While the kaji nemu has suddenly disappeared, old-timers say there was no such Kaji nemu crisis that Assam had ever faced since the signing of the Treaty of Yandaboo in February 1826. There is no reference in earlier history – including the Ahom buranjis and the account of the Moghul chroniclers – of any crisis Assam had faced due to shortage or disappearance of the kaji nemu. Those in the habit of seeing things from the global perspective have tried to blame the Ukraine crisis on the disappearance of the kaji nemu in Assam. A link of Assam Agricultural University, which gives a lot of scientific data about the kaji nemu, however, provides a clear indication that there should be no kaji nemu crisis in Assam at any given week or month of the year. According to AAU, though kaji nemu has two peak seasons in a year, a kaji nemu tree ideally produces fruits all around the year. Another unique characteristic of the kaji nemu fruit lies in its bearing habit, with the AAU website saying that even if it gets ripened the fruit does not fall from the tree up to a very long period. Moreover, while fruits are ideally ready for harvesting once during June-July and again during December-January, 40 to 50 fruits can be harvested from a plant after it is three years of age. Fruits remain marketable for weeks when stored at ambient temperature. Given this fact, there should not have been any situation where the kaji nemu has chosen to disappear all of sudden. But what is most amazing – and this has been mentioned in the AAU website link is that Assam annually produces over one lakh tones of kaji nemu in approximately 12845 hectares. Going by statistics provided by AAU, Dibrugarh district is the largest producer of kaji nemu, followed by Golaghat, Cachar, Chirang, Nalbari and Dima Hasao.