Organic Farming in India

Relevance: Prelims/Mains: G.S paper II: Governance & G.S paper III: Agriculture

Context: 

In a world battered by the COVID pandemic, the growth story of organic farming is unfolding with increasing demand not only in India but also globally.

Status of Organic farming in India:

• India ranks first: in number of organic farmers and ninth in terms of area under organic farming.
• First fully organic state: Sikkim became the first State in the world to become fully organic and other States including Tripura and Uttarakhand have set similar targets.
• Advantage to India:
  • North East India has traditionally been organic and the consumption of chemicals is far less than the rest of the country.
  • Similarly the tribal and island territories are being nurtured to continue their organic story.
  • Opportunity in Covid crisis: This is an opportune moment to be captured for a win-win situation for Indian farmers, consumers and the environment, as the demand for healthy and safe food is showing an upward trend and hence.

Government initiatives: 

• With the aim of assisting farmers to adopt organic farming and improve remunerations due to premium prices, two dedicated programs have been launched in 2015.
• These are – Mission Organic Value Chain Development for North East Region (MOVCD) and Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana (PKVY).
• The Agri-export Policy 2018: With the simultaneous thrust given by the policy, India can emerge as a major player in global organic markets.
• The major organic exports from India: Flax seeds, sesame, soybean, tea, medicinal plants, rice and pulses, which were instrumental in driving an increase of nearly 50% in organic exports in 2018-19.
• Certification: It is an important element of organic produce to instill customer confidence. Both PKVY and MOVCD are promoting certification under Participatory Guarantee System (PGS) and National Program for Organic Production (NPOP) respectively targeting domestic and exports markets.
  • The Food Safety and Standards (Organic Foods) Regulations, 2017 are based on the standards of NPOP and PGS.
  • The consumer should look for the logos of FSSAI, Jaivik Bharat / PGS Organic India on the produce to establish the organic authenticity of the produce.
  • PGS Green is given to chemical free produce under transition to ‘organic’ which takes 3 years.
• The organic e-commerce platform: Like www.jaivikkheti.in is being strengthened for directly linking farmers with retail as well as bulk buyers.

 

Way ahead: 

• Reviving the past: Natural farming is not a new concept in India, with farmers having tilled their land without the use of chemicals – largely relying on organic residues, cow dung, composts, etc since time immemorial.
• Integration of the elements: Such as soil, water, microbes and ‘waste’ products, forestry and agriculture is the correct recipe.
• Sustainable use of natural resources: Which are coming under severe stress due to ever increasing requirement of food and feedstock for agri based industry.

Hence with greater awareness and capacity building of the producers, Indian organic farmers will soon be reinforcing their rightful place in global agri trade and will help India in achieving SDG 2 targeting – end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture.

 

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