The state government has earmarked close to Rs 357 crore for value chain development to double the income of 4.5 lakh farming households, Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma said.
He said the government will strengthened existing interventions and invest in new interventions to achieve the goal.
Speaking at a programme to launch multiple projects at Babadam in West Garo Hills today, the Chief Minister said, “In the last six years, 166 processing units, 154 warehousing facilities and 34 cold storages has been set up covering the remotest corner of the state”.
He said that Integrated Village Cooperatives, Farmer Producer Organisation and Women’s collectives are being encouraged and promoted by the government to create a turnaround in the rural economy. “Some of our processing unit are finest and best in the entire Northeastern region,” he added.
The projects launched by the Chief Minister included the Garo Hills Agro Food Park, an initiative of All Garo Hills Multi Purpose Cooperative Society (AGHMPCS) led by Fr. Sunny Mavelil and an Arecanut Processing unit. He also laid the foundation stone for the P.A. Sangma Shopping Complex at Babadam.
The park fully funded by the government at an estimated cost of Rs. 15.73 crore comprises of Mustard Processing Unit, Cashew Processing Unit, Hi-Tech Food Lab, Ginger Processing Unit, Solar Power Plant and 25 Cold Storage Unit.
The newly inaugurated Agro Food Park will process 100 MT of raw produce annually, including mustard, cashew, ginger and arecanut.
“The state government has outlined its mission to support farmers engaged in agriculture and horticulture. Throughout the State, the government has given its push for plantation of crops for better inputs, training on packaging, value addition and marketing of produces,” Sangma said.
He lauded the cooperative society led by Fr. Sunny for promoting rural enterprises through farmers collective and said that intervention to empower the farmers and cultivators will be given support to upscale their entities.
He hoped that the Agro Food Park will demonstrate a successful model, which will be replicated in other parts of the state. He also said that a series of farmers’ orientation and tours will be organised by the government for sharing of knowledge and learning from each other.