Context
Indian Overseas Bank (IOB), Amul, and Rich Plus have signed a tripartite Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to promote organic farming in India.
Details of the News
(i) Launch of Organic Farming Card: A co-branded Organic Farming card was launched for account holders of IOB who practice organic farming. This card will provide farmers with discounted organic agricultural inputs through Amul’s certified retail outlets.
(ii) It has announced a dedicated credit scheme named “Harit Kranti”. It is particularly designed to address the fiscal needs of organic farmers.
(iii) The Richplus will provide technical expertise and training to farmers on organic farming practices
What is Organic farming?
It is a sustainable agriculture system that discards synthetic inputs like chemical fertilisers and pesticides. It depends on natural resources like crop residues, farmyard manure, and compost. Since all of this ensures good soil health and controls any kind of pests and diseases.
Current Status of Organic Farming in India
(i) India ranks in 4th place in terms of certified area globally (International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements Statistics 2022).
(ii) Madhya Pradesh has the largest area under organic certification, followed by Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Karnataka.
(iii) Sikkim is India’s first complete organic state. 75k hectares of agricultural land are under organic farming in the state.
(iv) India ranks first globally when it comes to the number of farmers practising organic farming.
(v) The exports of India’s organic products stood at around more than $700 million in 2022-23, and the global market size is around $135 billion. So, there is a huge scope to enhance the organic exports shortly.
Advantages of Organic Farming
(i) Healthier Food Products: It ensures that food products are free from harmful chemical residues. At the same time, high levels of essential nutrients must also be there.
(ii) Enhanced Soil Health: Its methods focus on building and maintaining soil health. So, it is done by increasing organic matter content, microbial activity, and nutrient cycling.
(iii) Economic Opportunities: It provides economic benefits to farmers through premium prices for organic products, access to niche markets, and reduced input costs for the long term.
(iv) Climate Change Mitigation: Its practices, such as composting and organic soil management, help in carbon sequestration in the soil, aiding in mitigating climate change by decreasing greenhouse gas emissions.
(v) Biodiversity Conservation: It supports biodiversity by creating habitats for beneficial insects, birds, and other wildlife.
Government Initiatives for Organic Farming
(i) Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY): The schemes give emphasis to end-to-end patronage to farmers practising organic farming. It includes production to processing, certification and marketing and post-harvest management. Training and Capacity Building are integral parts of the scheme.
(ii) Mission Organic Value Chain Development for North Eastern Region (MOVCDNER): It is especially for the farmers of the north eastern region who practice organic farming.
(iii) Jaivik Kheti Portal: It is a one-stop solution for promoting organic farmers to sell their organic produce and market organic farming and its advantages. This portal addresses queries of stakeholders like local groups, individual farmers, buyers, and input suppliers.
(iv) National Mission on Organic Farming (NMOF): Purported to promote organic farming practices, provide fiscal aid, also give patronage to certification processes.
Natural Farming is the need of the hour
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Way Ahead
(i) Enhance Market Access: Increase the procurement, branding, and retailing of organic produce through various platforms like Amul and Jaivik Kheti.
(ii) Promote Awareness and Training: It is important that farmers get technical know-how and training to meet certification norms and market demands.
(iii) Expand Certification Infrastructure: Simplify certification processes and expand availability of local certification bodies.
(iv) Research and Development: Invest in R&D to develop high-yield, pest-resistant, and climate-resilient organic crop varieties. Develop region-specific solutions for soil fertility as well as pest control to support farmers.
(v) Policy Support: Introduce risk mitigation strategies as well as insurance schemes for organic farmers to protect against yield losses.
Conclusion
The movement for organic farming in India has come to an important stage, and cooperatives have a critical role in materialising India’s goal of becoming the world’s largest organic food-producing country. So, Collaboration of all stakeholders, from government to sage, from institutions to community, is the need of the hour. Eventually, India, with its blessed type of monsoon climate, will be able to reap the benefits tremendously and propel the agriculture sector to its new growth.