The
agrarian revolution in Kerala has its roots in the state’s socialist ethos
dominated by its Communist Parties. A Young Turk of the Communist Party of
India (CPI), VS Sunil Kumar, has this agrarian blood running in his veins, and
his first stint as a Minister in Kerala is causing rapid changes in the
Agriculture Ministry and sector that he heads. His hands-on approach was
evident during an hour-long interaction where he articulated eloquently on the
various initiatives including insurance enhancement for crops, organic farming,
paddy farming revival, pesticide usage enforcement, attracting youth to farming
through value-added products, and turning around agri-PSUs. At the heart of all initiatives is Sunil
Kumar’s priority – the farmer.
Seasonal
Magazine recently met VS Sunil Kumar for an exclusive interview, excerpts of
which are given below:
When
the government completes its first year, what is the primary achievement of the
agriculture ministry?
Farmers who farm for their daily living were highly
insecure in Kerala. The prime reason for this was that the insurance scheme
against crop damage wasn’t updated with reasonable compensation since 1995. We
changed that. Compensation against damage has been increased multi-fold now.
For paddy, it has been increased from Rs.12,500 to Rs.35,000. Similarly for a
banana plant it has been raised from Rs.50 to Rs.300, for a nutmeg tree from
Rs.200 to Rs.3000, for a coconut palm from Rs.700 to Rs.2000, and likewise for
26 different agricultural crops. This has made the lives of farmers in Kerala
more secure.
As a
state dependent on rice as the staple food, what all have been your
achievements in the paddy sector?
The government had announced the year as the ‘Nel
Varsham’ (Year of Paddy). For the last several years the trend was paddy fields
either lying waste or being converted into plots for real estate and
construction activities. Within one year, we have reversed that trend. We could
cultivate 15,000 acres of land lying waste, this year. Even once-famous fields
like Methran Kayal, the rejected Aranmula Airport land, and Kanimangalam field
have been cultivated. Also, we are encouraging everyone to be farmers. Paddy
can be cultivated even in regular lands adjoining houses. We encouraged that,
and under that scheme around 3000 acres of land were cultivated for paddy. This
on-going year, we will increase this to 10,000 acres. The budget allocated for
paddy cultivation has doubled from Rs.35 crores to Rs.70 crores.
Promotion
of vegetable cultivation, especially organic vegetables has been a focus area.
What are the achievements in this regard?
Yes, this is one of the areas where maximum achievements
have been made by this government. For the first time in India, a state has
launched an organic brand of its own, called ‘Kerala Organic’. We are
encouraging organic clusters of farmers and they are producing organic
vegetables in over 10,000 hectares now. For ensuring quality, we have
introduced Good Agricultural Practices (GAP), and farmers are being trained for
it, and agricultural officers have been given authority to enforce the
standards. A Honey Mission has been launched. Organic honey is being promoted
under the Central scheme of Participatory Guarantee Certification (PGC) for
which Vegetable & Fruit Promotion Council (VFPC) has been appointed the
nodal agency. Organic manures and pesticides using micronutrients,
microorganisms, beneficial bacteria etc are being produced in a decentralised
manner by giving scientific training to farmers.
Overuse
of pesticides has been a major issue in Kerala. How are you battling it, and is
organic farming a real alternative to fertilizers and pesticides?
Yes. Around 1250 metric tons of pesticides are consumed
in Kerala. This is way too much. Over the last year, we have introduced strict
controls to curb this abuse. The problem was that the Pesticide Act of 1966 was
not being enforced. Direct demonstration of pesticides to farmers by pesticide
companies and agencies has been banned now. Companies still resorting to it
will lose their license. Tons of banned pesticides have been confiscated in
around a dozen cases. Farmers have been instructed to use pesticides only
according to the guidelines given by agricultural officers, and the officers
have been given enforcement powers to routinely inspect pesticide stocks lying
with companies and agencies. We can’t totally ban pesticides and fertilizers,
and introduce everything organic. Organic farming needs animal inputs, and
without growing animal wealth in proportion, we can’t scale up organic farming.
It can be done only step by step without affecting production and costs. The
focus is to introduce and grow organic farming as the alternative in a
scientific and systematic way.
Is
the high cost or poor quality of seeds affecting agriculture in a big way?
Yes, it is a major issue in Kerala. Now the situation is
such that anyone can produce seeds and sell it anywhere, and this is being done
to exploit the newfound interest of the masses in agriculture. This has
resulted in very poor seed quality, and the government is now acting forcefully
to curb this malaise. On the other hand, several bigger companies are touting
their so-called high-breed seeds which are often unsuitable for Kerala. So to
curb all these we have given a notice to all these operators to publish all
essential disclosures within six months and thus obtain a valid licence to sell
standardised seeds in the state. This is going to be enforced strictly.
Farmer
suicides have been an issue in Kerala. How are you tackling it?
It was an issue, but not anymore. Not even one farmer has
committed suicide during our first year, and I am hopeful that no farmer will
in our full term just because government didn’t support them. Apart from the
insurance enhancement I mentioned, we have introduced Direct Benefits Transfer
(DBT) in paddy, urea etc. Whenever and wherever there are farming contingencies
like it recently happened in Alappuzha and Palakkad, we have rushed there with
emergency financial aid which ensures that farmers don’t lose their financial
security, and that they come back to farming in the next season.
What
are your plans for attracting youngsters into agriculture?
Already many youngsters in Kerala are opting for farming.
But to make this sustainable, our plan is to direct them more to the production
of value added agricultural products. We conducted a well-attended seminar in
December to study this issue in detail, and a slew of measures are now being
implemented. Agro Parks are going to be established in all districts. Around
1000 entrepreneurs will be enabled to start their agro produce units with the
support of NABARD. Producer companies, procurement facilities, and marketing
systems are being created so that middlemen are eliminated, farmers get good
remuneration, and consumers get excellent produce at fair prices. The effect of
this will be evident in the upcoming Onam and Vishu seasons.
How
are you making the contributions from Kerala Agricultural University more
productive?
KAU does a lot of good research but it should benefit the
farmers in the state. Towards this, we are forming a new triangular
relationship between agricultural department, KAU, and farmers. One initiative
that we have facilitated in this regard is publishing their ‘Package of
Practice’ in Malayalam. Until now, this Bible for agriculture professionals
including our officers was available only in English. Also, a new Organic
Package of Practice has been introduced.
What
are the other achievements of the Agriculture Ministry during this past year?
One notable achievement is that we have made some agri
PSUs profitable again like in KERAFED; cut losses in some agri PSUs like
Plantation Corporation, Farming Corporation etc; and revived defunct PSUs in
the sector like Jive, Coconut Development Corporation etc. Equipment companies
like KAMCO have been given revival plans with new tie-ups. Corruption at PSUs
like Horticorp has been addressed and a synergy formed with Vegetable &
Fruit Promotion Council (VHPC). Haritha Keralam Mission has been launched which
is addressing water availability and afforestation issues effectively.
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