AHMEDABAD: The government has been promoting organic farming in the country since 2015-16 through the schemes of Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY) and Mission Organic Value Chain Development for North Eastern Region (MOVCDNER). Both the schemes stress end-to-end support to farmers engaged in organic farming i.e. from production to processing, certification and marketing, and post-harvest management.
However, according to the Ministry of Agriculture of India’s response in the Lok Sabha, a measly Rs 10.10 lakh have been provided under this initiative in Gujarat during the last three years, and this cash has also remained idle for three years. So, in the last three years, the Gujarat government has spent nothing to promote organic farming.
On December 19, 2023, in the Lok Sabha, in response to a question raised by MPs Rajesh Chudasma and Nama Nageshwar Rao, the Ministry of Agriculture of the Government of India stated that in the last three years, 10.10 lakh rupees have been allocated under the PKVY scheme in Gujarat, while 0.00 rupees have been used, i.e. that the central government allocated only 10 lakh rupees for organic farming and that too was not used.
On the other hand, Andhra Pradesh utilized Rs 10,004.83 lakh out of a total of 10004.83 lakh PKVY Funds, Bihar received 2541.31 lakh, of which 792.98 lakh were used, and Chhattisgarh received 3,738.11 lakh, of which 2,393.78 lakh were used. Besides, the money granted to other states has been substantially utilized, demonstrating that the Gujarat government is unconcerned about organic farming in Gujarat.
The Ministry of Agriculture’s June answer to the Lok Sabha states that between 2016 and 2022—that is, the last six years—organic agricultural land in Gujarat has not increased by an inch. In addition, while 10,27,865 beneficiary farmers nationwide are engaged in organic agriculture under the PKVY program, not a single farmer from Gujarat is among them.
Gujarat cultivates around 96 lakh hectares of land, with organic agriculture accounting for 32,902.51 hectares. Organic farming was practised on 30,092 hectares in 2014-15, with an additional 2,000 hectares added in 2015-16, implying that organic agricultural area has not risen even an inch from 2016 to 2022. Gujarat Congress spokesperson Parthiv Kathawadia alleged that the state government’s policy of promoting organic farming is completely futile. “Organic farming is both costly and time-consuming. Farmers receive lower yields and returns,” he said.
In India, as of March 2020, 2,780,000 hectares were under certified organic farming, about 2% of India’s 140.1 million hectares net sown area. Sikkim became India’s first and only state to proclaim itself “organic” in 2016. It was not simple for Sikkim to shift to a 100% organic state. The farms are modest and numerous, located on the Himalayas.