HYDERABAD: Walkers strolling in the lawns of the Public Gardens now buy organic food products straight from the farm at their disposal, thanks to the Horticulture Department permitting the Bhagyanagar Gau Adharita Natural Farmers Producer Co Ltd to set up an organic farmers’ sale point (FPO).
The FPO which was formed under the guidance of Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS) a year ago, has already enrolled 150 farmers from districts close to Hyderabad, presently targeting around 300 members. The shop sells dairy products as well as those of sugarcane and leafy vegetable farmers, bee-keepers and paddy growers. Inaugurating the organic store last week, L Venkatram Reddy, Commissioner for Horticulture, urged BKS representatives to encourage city-dwellers to grow terrace, balcony and kitchen gardens at their homes, so that their dependence on purchasing could come down and their good health could be maintained.
The FPO which was financially assisted by the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD), has been selling farmers’ product in various organic stores and also in elite residential communities like Aparna Sarovar among others. According to IVR Sudhakar Raju, head of marketing wing of BKS, the FPO has been producing leafy vegetables weighing a tonne every week, and has adopted integrated crop management and marketing techniques with BKS’ continuous training and guidance.
“Assuming that there are 10 lakh people living in Hyderabad who have a liking for organic food products, such targeted cultivation needs to happen in 2,000 acres under various clusters around the city’s periphery,” he tells Express.
He also appealed to those who have bought large chunks of land in these areas who can afford to go for organic farming, and also those who were interested in such farming, to visit www.gaps.org.in/telangana, where they can find books, videos and also crop-wise packages of practices for organic farming.
Mohanaiah, former DGM of NABARD, informs the FPO members that the Centre has allotted `1 lakh crore as Agri Infrastructure Fund, out of which `6,000 crore was allotted to Telangana.
This fund has been earmarked for developing infrastructure for processing and post-harvest methods and technologies. “FPOs can secure loans up to `2 crore without any collateral security under the scheme, with three per cent interest subvention. There is also an online portal where there is help for FPOs as to which banks they could apply to for loans,” he says, adding that FPOs could get working capital support through NABKISAN, a subsidiary of NABARD.
variety of produce
The shop at Public Garderns sells dairy products as well as those of sugarcane and leafy vegetable farmers, bee-keepers, paddy growers
The FPO has been producing leafy vegetables weighing a tonne every week