Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma said in the Assembly on Thursday that Meghalaya is poised to soon become the country’s largest State in terms of area under organic agriculture.
Sangma made the statement during Question Hour on the fourth day of the Autumn Session while responding to concerns raised by Nongkrem MLA, Ardent Miller Basaiawmoit on fertiliser pricing, availability and exploitation of farmers.
Basaiawmoit sought clarification from the government on measures to prevent farmers from being exploited through overpricing and hoarding of fertilisers.
He pointed out that despite government regulations fixing fertiliser prices, farmers were reportedly being forced to pay higher prices in the market.
Agriculture Minister Timothy D Shira informed the House that the government has put in place measures to regulate the sale and distribution of fertilisers.
These include enforcing the government-notified maximum retail price, the Fertiliser Control Order, weekly inspections and mandatory display of prices and daily stock at retail outlets.
The Minister also said fertiliser sales are being routed through Point of Sale machines linked to the Integrated Fertilizer Management System to monitor transactions and trace irregularities.
Basaiawmoit further raised the issue of hoarding by wholesalers and suppliers and asked whether surprise inspections were conducted to detect such practices.
The government informed the House that surprise checks are being carried out and around 1,432 inspections have been conducted. Retailers violating the rules could face cancellation of their licences.
During the discussion, Sangma shifted focus to the State’s broader agricultural policy and said Meghalaya is progressively moving towards organic agriculture.
He said the government’s target is to make Meghalaya the State with the largest organic area coverage in the country in terms of hectares, with certification already underway.
The Chief Minister said the transition to organic agriculture has to be phased, as an abrupt reduction in chemical fertiliser use could affect agricultural production and farmers’ incomes.
As part of the transition, the government has introduced biofertilisers and is discouraging excessive use of chemical fertilisers. Certain areas have also been notified for fertiliser use as the government works to expand certified organic areas.
Sangma said organic certification is based on soil testing and certification of agricultural areas to establish that chemicals and fertilisers have not been used. Meghalaya is increasingly moving towards certification of organic farms and agricultural areas.
Basaiawmoit, while supporting organic farming, stressed that the transition would take time and farmers would continue to require fertilisers during the interim period. He said the immediate concern was to prevent farmers from being exploited while the State shifts towards organic agriculture.
The issue of the recent crash in cabbage prices was also raised, with Basaiawmoit pointing to farmers bringing their produce to Shillong for free distribution after receiving very low prices.
The Chief Minister said the government had been monitoring cabbage prices and attributed fluctuations partly to seasonal supply and demand, including increased supplies from other parts of the Northeast.
