Farmers to be told to opt for other crops
VIBHA VERMA
PANJIM: Overwhelmed by positive response to government’s 100 percent subsidy scheme for promoting Poly Green House (PGH) farming, surplus production of Gerbera flowers and Capsicum has now forced Agriculture Department to consider discouraging farmers from taking up these two crops.
The scheme started to encourage farmers to set up PGH for commercial floriculture and horticulture production has received enormous response but competition among farmer entrepreneurs to grow the same crop is worrying the department.
“Gerbera and Capsicum cultivation is at the saturation point. We don’t want the cultivation of the two crops beyond the existing units…. We are advising them not to compete with each other on the same crop and instead opt for different varieties,” Agriculture Director Prajapati Toofani told Herald.
The agriculture officers are promoting flowers like Anthurium, Orchids and Gypsophilia which are in huge demand to bedeck wedding venues, hotels and resorts. “The plentiful assortment of the much-in demand flowers will give them a wider scope of their existence in the market. The freshness of these flowers survives for a long time,” he explained. “Similarly, farmers are encouraged to grow cucumber and other off-seasonal vegetables in the PGH.”
The department has asked the cultivators to make maximum use of the PGH as the earning is much more than traditional farming.
The department, in the last financial year granted approval for the setting up of 78 PGHs – 20 floriculture and 58 horticulture, majority of which are concentrated in Ponda, Sanguem, Canacona, Dharbandora, Sattari, Pernem, Bicholim and others places. Of the total units, 17 are for Gerbera daisies (including 1-2 units who have taken up Anthurium and Gypsophilia along with Gerbera) and 43 for different coloured capsicum. While some farms have already embarked on the projects, the remaining are either in the under-construction stage or yet to begin.
The department’s recent plans for allowing 100 more units for the horticulture/agriculture crops and floral cultivation will perhaps not entertain applications for Gerbera and Capsicum. The reason also being the local farmers have not tapped markets in the neighbouring states where surplus production can be exported.
“The production from the 78 units itself will be surplus. If more and more units go for these two crops, they may not get any market here… Moreover, the farmers have to tap exporting potential markets in the neighbouring states,” he commented.
The government spends a maximum Rs 935 per sq mtrs for the land and Rs 150 per sq mtrs for installing drop verification system and planting material. In this regard, the department has sent 80 farmers and nine officers for basic training in PGH to a Pune institute. The director said a PGH could be setup in small area in an agricultural landholding itself and still make a better earning that in traditional farming.
