MARGAO
Asserting that going organic is the way forward, Agriculture Minister Vijai Sardesai on Wednesday announced that the government has floated a global expression of interest (EoI) to set up an organic farming centre of excellence in the State. This, he said, would benefit of farmers willing to switch over to organic farming and to achieve the goal of making Goa the second organic farming State in the country.
Saying that the Goa government is ready to implement the organic cluster schemes in the State, he said the administration is willing to support farmers going organic by bearing the input cost and provide marketing avenues, including tie-up with starred resorts dotting the coastal belt.
During an interaction with the media on the sidelines of a seminar on organic farming held by the agriculture department at the Ravindra Bhavan, the Agriculture Minister said the government is in touch with an Israeli-based company, Green 2000, on how to create the centre for excellence for organic farming.
“After discussions with the Israeli company, the government has floated an EoI to set up the organic farming centre of excellence in the State. The centre will come up at one of the agricultural farms in the State, where it will give an insight to the people on what organic farming is all about. They say that seeing is believing. Let the Goan farmers see for themselves before going in for organic farming,” he said.
Pointing out that it took Sikkim eight to ten years to earn the status of becoming the country’s first organic farming state, Sardesai, however, said the North Eastern state is still facing a lot of issues till date. “India’s production by way of organic farming is pegged at 30 per cent of the world production. But, India’s actual production in organic farming is only 2.59 per cent of the total production,” he said.
Saying that the policies in respect of organic farming need fine tuning, the minister announced that he is ready to implement the organic clusters schemes in Fatorda if the farmers are ready to go for organic farming. “I am ready to bear the input cost as well as provide marketing avenues. But, tomorrow farmers should not come and say they are not provided the fertilizers to cultivate their fields,” he added.
“If Goan farmers are willing to go organic, the government will promote the products as brand Goa and the starred hotels will procure the organic produce from the farmers.”
