IMPHAL, July 4: Manipur has a potential area of about 2,77,064 hectare for development of horticulture, which constitutes about 12 percent of the total geographical area of the State. So far about 35 percent of the potential area is already under plantation of horticulture crops and the target for 2020 is its expansion to 80 percent.
Addressing the first day of the press conference series of government departments being organized by Department of Information and Public Relation at its office complex, additional director of Horticulture, AS Ningmei, said that of the total plan schemes fund for horticulture, only 15 percent is contributed by state while the rest 85 percent is supported by CSS and NEC.
He continued that recently the Ministry of Agriculture was changed to Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare and as such the National Agriculture Policy has now been framed as national policy (2007) for farmers.
He highlighted some of the Centrally sanctioned schemes taken up by the department among which is a new scheme called Mission Organic Value Chain Development for North Eastern Region which will funded cent percent by the Centre.
The implementation will be through service providers for development of commercially viable production clusters in concentrated mode, he said.
He further talked about Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH) and stated that the funding pattern will be in the mode of 90 percent share by Centre and rest by state. The beneficiaries were selected by District Level Beneficiary Selection Committee, he said.
Similarly, the funding of Rastriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) focuses on horticulture related developments works.
He also shared information about Per Drop More Crop (Micro Irrigation) which is a sub component of CSS Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana. The share of Centre for this scheme will be 54 percent, state government will contribute 6 percent and the beneficiaries will have to dole out a share of 40 percent.
The North Eastern Council (NEC) project on Re-establishment of Magfruit Factory will be funded 90 percent by NEC and rest by the state, he announced.
Ningmei said that the state has planned a scheme for the establishment of orchards in hills for which 70 percent will be from state’s share and 30 percent from the pockets of beneficiaries. The scheme of Assistant to Small and Marginal Farmers for Increasing Agriculture Production (Land and Development) will be taken up with equal sharing by the state government and beneficiary. He further said that the Regional Potato Farm for Production of Seed Potato scheme is also available now.
Through the energetic initiation from the department the volume of horticulture products has been increasing rapidly in the state, he asserted. During the years with a continuing effort the department is transforming homestead gardening to commercial horticulture, he added.
AO of Horticulture, K Debadata Sharma said that a pilot project for the welfare of horticultural producers to enable them to save their products from wastage and to keep their product for longer period, the Solar Power Cold Storage project, will be launched.
The project has been sanctioned by the North Eastern Council and the solar power cold storage which is a mobile facility that can be shifted to any place easily will be stationed at Namthunjang, Tamenglong district; Ngarungphung, Ukhrul and Haipi, Kangopkpi during the first batch.
AO, Ningthemjao; Deputy Director, L Joghachandra and Director of DIPR, Meghanchandra also attended the function.
