Chandigarh, May 13 – Haryana Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister, Sh. Shyam Singh Rana said that the state government is taking significant and long-term steps to promote natural and organic farming on a large scale in the state. The aim of this initiative is not only to increase farmers’ income, but also to maintain soil fertility and reduce the excessive use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides.
He said that as consumers are becoming more health conscious and the demand for organic products is continuously increasing. Keeping this in view, the Haryana Government is encouraging farmers to adopt natural and organic farming so that they can get better prices for their produce.
The Minister said that farmers adopting natural or organic farming will be given a subsidy of Rs.10,000 per acre per year for the next five years. However, to avail the benefit of this scheme, farmers will have to get their produce certified in advance by the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) to ensure quality and reliability of their products.
Sh. Rana further said that around 800 acres of land owned by the Agriculture Department will also be brought under this scheme. This land will be leased only to those farmers who commit to practising natural or organic farming on it for at least 10 years. This step will help create a strong long-term base for organic farming and provide lasting benefits to farmers.
The Agriculture Minister also said that to ensure farmers do not face any difficulty in the certification process, an authorised agency is being developed at the state level. Under this, the Haryana State Seed Certification Agency will be designated as the authorised body for organic farming certification. This will save farmers both time and cost, as they will not have to approach outside agencies.
He said that farmers practising natural and organic farming in districts including Panchkula, Yamunanagar, Karnal, Sonipat, Rohtak, Gurugram, Faridabad, Hisar, Charkhi Dadri and Narnaul will be provided special space in mandis to sell their produce. Modern laboratories for quality testing of produce will also be set up in these mandis by the Haryana State Agricultural Marketing Board.
Sh. Rana said that after the establishment of these laboratories, the process of obtaining accreditation from APEDA for testing and certification of produce will also be completed. The work will be carried out by the Haryana State Seed Certification Agency. This will help Haryana’s organic products gain recognition in national and international markets.
He said that this initiative will not only help increase farmers’ income, but will also prove to be an important step towards environmental protection, improving soil quality and providing healthy food to people.
