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Dimapur, Sep. 28 (EMN): ICAR-NRC on Mithun in collaboration with officials of the National Bank of Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard), from the north-eastern states conducted a workshop on “Finalisation of bankable mithun farming” on September 26.
The workshop was a sequel to the stakeholder workshop for finalising the techno-economic parameters for developing a bankable scheme for mithun farming held during 2018-19, an update received here on Sunday informed.
Dr. Abhijit Mitra, director of ICAR-NRC in his opening remark highlighted the present mithun production system and ways forward for its improvement with scientific inputs, and emphasised on the urgent need of developing bankable mithun farming as it is already covered under the National Livestock Mission (NLM), launched by Government of India.
He urged upon the financing institutions to come forward considering the unique production system of mithun supporting the economic livelihood of many farmers in the region.
Prof. S Pan presented a bankable mithun scheme elaborating on financial implications, technical feasibility, and economic viability.
During the workshop, all the issues including scheme period, interest moratorium, possibilities of credit subsidy and diversification were deliberated at length as to how mithun farming can be bankable taking the interest of stakeholders and financing agencies into a win-win proposition.
The members agreed that after incorporating the suggestions and technical inputs given during the workshop, a revised bankable scheme would be communicated to Nabard.
The ICAR-NRC expressed that the deliberation made in the workshop will not only pave the way of fulfilling the need for credit support for mithun farming but it will be a game-changer towards entrepreneurship development involving mithun farmers.
Mithun (Bos frontalis), the magnificent and unique bio-resource of north-eastern states serve as a means of livelihood security of lakhs of mithun farmers; however, unlike other livestock, mithun farming is not yet bankable; as a result the mithun farmers are deprived of reaping the advantages of the government schemes including the national livestock mission launched by the government of India, it stated.
ICAR-NRC on Mithun, the only institution committed for the continual development of mithun and its rearer, has been constantly trying to address this issue with the banking and credit institutions, it added.
The programme was participated by Nabard, state-level banking committee and department of Veterinary and Animal Husbandry of all the mithun rearing states namely Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram and Nagaland.