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DIMAPUR — Nagaland Mega Oil Palm Plantation Drive-2023 for Zone-1 was held at Angh House located at Agri Expo site, Chümoukedima, on Friday.
Zone-1 consisted of Peren, Chümoukedima, Wokha, Dimapur and Niuland districts and Zone-II consisted of Mokokchung, Longleng and Mon districts.
Speaking at the launch event, advisor of Agriculture, Mhathung Yanthan, said that initially, he was sceptical about the prospects of oil palm plantation in Nagaland particularly on the economic viability for the farmers. He was of the notion that without proper market arrangements, it could end up exploiting the farmers.
Yanthan said he came to the realisation of the potentiality of palm oil cultivation signing an MoU with Godrej Agrovet Limited.
Took part in the Mega Plantation Drive for Oil Palm Cultivation being held today at Agri Expo, Chumukedima in presence of the Department officials, #GodrejAgrovetLtd. and Oil Palm Growers of Peren, Chumukedima, Dimapur, Niuland and Wokha District.
— Mhathung Yanthan (@MhathungYantha2) August 4, 2023
Mega Plantation Drive for Oil… pic.twitter.com/dF3Z4EPFTN
Considering that palm oil cultivation is suitable in the foothill areas, he encouraged the farmers to put in more effort and established themselves as oil palm farmers. He has also advised the farmers to focus on mastering themselves in the cultivation of oil palm in order to reap higher production.
Highlighting that the government has introduced the National Mission on Edible Oils-Oil Palm (NMEO-OP) scheme to reduce dependency on the import of palm oil from other countries, Yanthan urged the farmers to avail the facility in order to enhance their productivity.
Yanthan also urged the farmers to be market intelligent and know the dynamic of oil palm marketing. Since oil palm cultivation is a non-traditional crop in the region, he encouraged them to educate themselves about the intricacies of its cultivation and commercial aspects.
[bsa_pro_ad_space id=1]Also speaking at the event, representative of Godrej Agrovet Pvt., Soumyadeep Dutta made four promises. He stated that as implementing agencies, they would provide high-quality seedlings, impart valuable technical knowledge by conducting surveys to assess the current conditions of existing plantations in all five districts, adhere to the minimum price set under NMEO-OP by ensuring fair compensation for the farmers' produce and to supporting them for the next 25 to 30 years.
Dutta has revealed their plans to establish a one-stop solution centre called "Samadhan" for oil palm farmers with the support of the Nagaland government. According to him, the centre would provide a comprehensive package of knowledge, tools, services, fertilisers and solutions exclusively tailored for oil palm farmers in Nagaland.
He mentioned that the "Samadhan Centre" in Dimapur would be the second of its kind in the Northeast region and disclosed that the company would try to establish one Samadhan centre in each district.
The launch event was marked with a ceremonial planting of oil palm saplings by Mhathung Yanthan, Dutta and director of Agriculture, M Ben Yanthan.