SHILLONG: The Department of Agriculture in Meghalaya is coming up with an Agriculture Policy and also Minimum Support Price (MSP) for the benefit of the farmers of the State.
“The Department of Agriculture has start its work on the Agriculture Policy and the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for farm produces as envisaged in the policy of the Central government,” State Agriculture Minister Banteidor Lyngdoh said.
According to Lyngdoh, an Agricultural Policy for the state is the need of the hour since 80 per cent of the people are engaged in agriculture. The policy will focus on cultivation of various produces, the rates of the farm produces, farmers’ accessibility to markets among other things.
He also informed that the department has also set rolling the idea of implementing the Minimum Support Price (MSP). The MSP will protect the farmers if they go on a loss due to fall in prices of their crops, during natural calamities and on other occasions. “Minimum Support Price is the policy of the Central government which has been implemented since 1970. But I am surprised that Meghalaya till date has not been able to kick start MSP for its own farmers who are the backbone of the economy of the state,” Lyngdoh said.
The Agriculture Minister stated that in the beginning the State government will not be able to implement MSP on all the crops produced in the state but for starters it will apply on crops which are produced maximum in Meghalaya. He also said that at the moment the farmers who sell their produces in the market are being exploited by the middlemen and big businessmen but with the agriculture policy, this will stop.
Source: https://www.sentinelassam.com
