BHOIRYMBONG (MEGHALAYA), June 19: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday said the Northeast has the potential to become India’s next engine of growth by leveraging its strengths in sustainable agriculture and premium organic produce.
She also asserted that Meghalaya is uniquely positioned to lead because of the trust it commands in global markets.
Inaugurating the Northeast’s largest organic spice processing plant of the Eastern Ri-Bhoi Organic Farmer Producer Company Ltd here, Sitharaman said, “The future of agriculture increasingly belongs not to those who produce the most, but to those who produce the best — cleaner, more traceable, more trusted and more premium.”
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“When Meghalaya’s farmers rise, the Northeast rises. And when the Northeast rises, India’s growth acquires a new engine,” she said, congratulating the Meghalaya government, women collectives and entrepreneurs for driving the state’s organic farming movement forward.
Emphasising Meghalaya’s competitive advantage, the finance minister said the state need not compete with large agricultural states in volume as the future increasingly belongs to trusted quality and trusted producers.
“The world is entering an age where trust commands a premium, and Meghalaya is uniquely positioned for this future because it possesses trust that is rooted in nature, community and generations of ecological knowledge,” she said.
Sitharaman said the state’s growing spice economy demonstrates that “economic growth and ecological stewardship can advance together”, adding that development need not come at the expense of nature.
“We have to live, cohabit with nature,” she said.
Referring to India’s vision of becoming a developed nation by 2047, she said, “India’s ambition for 2047 — a Viksit Bharat — requires the productive integration of every community, every region and every state into the national growth story, and the Northeast is central to this.”
Recalling remarks by Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma, she said she wanted the Northeast not merely to keep pace with the rest of the country but to emerge as its leader.
“I heard the chief minister say that we want all states to develop and that the Northeast should not be left behind. I want the country to say that the Northeast will lead all of India,” she said.
Painting a picture of inclusive development, Sitharaman said she envisioned a woman farmer from Eastern Ri-Bhoi growing turmeric using traditional methods inherited from her grandmother, processing it in a certified facility and seeing the product sold in retail stores in London, Paris or Singapore while earning enough to pursue her aspirations without leaving her homeland.
She also spoke of young entrepreneurs building global brands around Meghalaya’s organic spices and cooperatives that began with a handful of families but have grown strong enough to negotiate directly with international buyers. (PTI)
