Team Herald
PANJIM: With focus on marketing agricultural produce under ‘Brand Goa’, the State government is contemplating conducting microclimatic study to identify the fruits and vegetables that are endemic of certain areas.
Minister for Agriculture Vijai Sardesai on Thursday said that there should be a microclimatic study on endemic areas which produces a particular crop. “This will help us to undertake intensive cultivation of that crop in that area. This way, the product is easy to source and we can create market under Brand Goa,” Minister said.
Addressing the 31st National Conference by Maharashtra Society of Agriculture Economic on “Agro-Tourism, Doubling of Farmers Income, Economics of Production and marketing of Cashew and Coconuts”, Sardesai said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken up an ambitious and challenging task of doubling the farmers’ income by 2022. Sardesai said that agro tourism is a way of supplementing farmer’s income and is presently used as tool in countries such as America where they get additional income. “Agro tourism can also actually help us to keep Goa green 365 days a year,” he said.
He said that the Department of Town and Country Planning (TCP) has drafted agro tourism policy with a focus on to double the farmers’ income, under which we provide increase in FAR for construction using local materials.
Minister said agro tourism is an activity, which will keep farms green and also welcome visitors and take them back to tradition.
“For example, in Italy, you have a concept of farm stay. You can stay in farm and have organic food. You are brought back to live traditionally. It is also a growing industry in the countries such as US, Canada, Australia and Philippines. This is their model,” he said, adding “What would be our model is something to think about”.
“We want to make a new India, where predominant population which is into agriculture is going to get the justice. So to give them justice you need to give them a solution as to what they should do to double the income and to not be on the verge of suicide and not be exploited. Goa, hence wants to promote agro tourism,” he stated.
Sardesai said Goa, having its unique identity it is not just about beaches and casinos, but also about coconut palms and agricultural fields. “Goa needs to be green clean and smart. For Goa to remain green we need farming. May be farming is not economical. And that is the challenge. The challenge is to bring more and more fallow land under cultivation and attract youth,” he said.
