Ladakh has dispatched its first commercial air consignment of locally grown Lilium flowers, sending 15,000 premium stems from Leh to major flower markets in Delhi, Mumbai and Chandigarh. The shipment was flagged off by Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena at Kushok Bakula Rimpochee Airport (KBR), Leh, on September 29.
The A-grade Lilium stems, each carrying four to five buds, were cultivated at an altitude of around 10,600 feet at the Choglamsar flower field in Leh, described by the Ladakh administration as the world’s highest-altitude flower field. The consignment includes red, pink, white, yellow and orange varieties. The flowers have a shelf life of five to seven days and are expected to serve premium domestic markets.
The initiative marks Ladakh’s entry into commercial floriculture and is aimed at creating new livelihood opportunities through high-value agricultural products. The flowers are used extensively by the floral and hospitality industries and can fetch around ₹150–₹200 per stem in domestic retail markets.
The Choglamsar project has also created local employment, with 15 women involved in cutting, sorting and packaging operations. A local botanist has been assigned responsibility for marketing the flowers in national markets.
The flower field, which contains more than 25 lakh flowers, was developed in about two months. Following the pilot project’s progress, the administration plans to expand high-value floriculture to other parts of Ladakh. District administrations have been asked to identify land for flower cultivation, with a broader target of bringing around 200 acres under high-value floriculture by next year.
The first air shipment provides Ladakh with a new avenue to connect high-altitude agricultural production with distant urban markets, where rapid air transport is important for maintaining the quality and shelf life of cut flowers.