How vegetable cultivation is helping Manipur farmers to harvest ‘profit’

Thanks to the idea of switching from rice to vegetable farming, the farmers of Manipur are finally managing to earn profits.

Imphal, April 3: The times are difficult and who knows it better than the farming community of the country. As climate change, piling loans and lack of profit are driving farmers to commit suicide across the country, in Manipur their counterparts are scripting agricultural success stories.

Thanks to the idea of switching from rice to vegetable farming, the farmers of the northeastern state are finally managing to earn profits. In fact, in the recent times, a lot of farmers have shifted from rice growing to vegetable farming as the traditional paddy cultivation is no more profitable.

Talking about their success stories, a farmer from Imphal, the capital city of the state, told ANI that more and more farmers are opting for vegetable farming. Along with record harvest, vegetable farming has yielded the profit for the farming community in the state.

"I took up vegetable farming instead of rice cultivation, as it enabled me to generate a better income," Ibohanbi told ANI.

"Imphal: Farmers increasingly opting for vegetable farming in Manipur; farmer Ibohanbi says, 'I took up vegetable farming instead of rice cultivation, as it enabled me to generate a better income'," tweeted ANI.

Agriculture is the main source of employment for more than 50 per cent population of Manipur. It also contributes a major share to the total state domestic product. Like in Manipur, in neighbouring Meghalaya, the farmers have succeeded in ushering a "green revolution".

The small state with "little available" land has harvested record produce in 2015-16. The credit for the agricultural feat goes to the farmers of the state, which forms the bulk of the population. Impressed by their achievement, Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his last monthly radio broadcast, Mann Ki Baat, profusely praised the farmers of the northeastern state.

"One thing that impressed me the most was Meghalaya and the hard work of the farmers of the state. This state has a small area but it has attained a grand success," the PM said

At the 105th Indian Science Congress in Imphal last month, scientists and agricultural experts stated that India needs to adopt a "well designed" integrated farming system (IFS) to realise PM Modi's vision to double farmers' income by 2022.

"The IFS can enhance farmers' income if we provide a well-designed system," said M Premjit, vice-chancellor, Central Agricultural University (CAU), Iroishemba, in Manipur. "We have already prepared a document to adopt IFS in the northeastern states and have even submitted it to the ICAR (Indian Council of Agricultural Research)," he added.

The concept of IFS stands for the all-round development of agriculture with animal husbandry and other occupations forming the core to agricultural practices.

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