HT Bureau
GUWAHATI, June 6: In a significant step towards advancing organic agriculture in Arunachal Pradesh, the North East Centre for Technology Application and Reach (NECTAR), an autonomous body under the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India, has initiated key interventions under the project “Promoting Scientific Organic Agriculture in the North East Region.”
Funded by the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (MDoNER) under the PM-DevINE scheme, the project is being implemented in 15 clusters across East Kameng and West Kameng districts.
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The PM-DevINE Organic Scheme aims to create a robust organic farming ecosystem throughout the Northeastern states by focusing on farmer training and capacity building, facilitating organic certification, establishing demonstrative farm labs at the cluster level, developing community seed banks, and creating a digital architecture using modern technologies such as UAVs. This digital system will integrate key components such as farmers’ details, yield, soil characteristics, and more for data-driven decision-making. It also emphasizes market linkage of organic produce through e-marketing platforms and dedicated organic outlets.
The scheme envisages the establishment of 250 organic-certified clusters, each guided by a Master Trainer and involving 100 trainee farmers. The overall goal is to train 25,000 farmers across the Northeast, ensuring their produce is certified and connected to viable markets. The state-wise distribution of these clusters is as follows: Assam (75), Meghalaya (55), Tripura (50), Mizoram (20), Nagaland (20), Manipur (15), and Arunachal Pradesh (15).
In Arunachal Pradesh, the project targets 1,500 farmers across 15 clusters. The focus areas include scientific capacity building, land certification under the Participatory Guarantee System (PGS), and digital monitoring of progress.
To enhance field coordination and digital data management, 15 smartphones were distributed to Master Trainers in East and West Kameng districts. These devices will be used to track farming activities, collect field-level data, and ensure efficient communication among trainers, farmers, and agricultural experts to address on-ground challenges effectively.
Additionally, Master Trainers received training materials to support farmer education sessions within the clusters. These materials include modules on organic practices, composting techniques, and natural pest management—designed to strengthen grassroots knowledge on sustainable farming practices.
As part of the seed support initiative, buckwheat seeds were distributed in several clusters: four clusters in Shergaon, one in Jigaon, one in Membachur, and four clusters in Rupa and Thongre.
The distribution ceremony was graced by several senior NECTAR officials, including Shri Rakesh Kumar Sarmah (Chief Coordinator, Technical), Dr. Prabhat Borpuzari (Regional Officer), Shri Pranjal Saikia (MIS Coordinator), Shri Dharmendra Kumar Jha (Senior Analyst), and Shri Bipul Sinha (Junior Analyst).
