"Organic farming is not new to the Naga people; state government pushing for an Organic State," says Neiphiu Rio.
Our Reporter
Dimapur, Nov. 29 (EMN): Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio on Friday said that organic farming is not new to Naga people, and his government is pushing to have Nagaland declared as an Organic State.
Speaking at the ‘Meet the organic pioneers’ event held at Niathu Resort, Rio informed that the Nagaland government is undertaking several initiatives to achieve the Organic State tag.
The event was jointly organised by the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements Asia Organic Youth Forum (IFOAM Asia), Nagaland Organic Konnect and the government of Nagaland.
The chief minister reminded the gathering that Naga ancestors had grown their food naturally for centuries, without any synthetic chemicals and artificial fertilisers.
He said that the event was a ‘great opportunity to exchange firsthand knowledge and learn about Nagaland and what organic farming is all about’, and added that the government is determined to pursue sustainable agriculture in the state.
Rio said that farmers could enhance their knowledge through new scientific technologies so that they adapt to climate change resilient systems of food production.
Stating that Nagaland state is organic by default, he said ‘our forefathers were not exposed to outside market’. Rio urged the gathering to learn scientific methods of agriculture.
The chief minister, further, reminded that Nagaland possesses naturally fertile lands as nature has blessed it with all the ingredients for farming.
He expressed a belief that the youth have the potential to make Nagaland an Organic State and encouraged them to engage in large-scale farming.
The CEO of Investment Development Authority of Nagaland (IDAN), Alemtemshi Jamir urged the gathering to focus more on attracting young people towards farming. He pointed out that by 2050, the world’s population is expected to hit 13 billion.
The real problem, Jamir said, is how to feed them?
Modern world has brought up pesticides, chemicals and now plastic, he said. These are no longer merely academic issues, Jamir added. He challenged the youth to take it as a cause and prove to the world that ‘we can survive without chemicals’.
The president of IFOAM Asia, Zhou Zejiang informed that they have trained 200 young people in organic agriculture till date.
He was confident that organic policy can be implemented in Nagaland. “Young people are the rising sun, future of the world and future of the organic sector,” said Zejiang.
Minister for Planning and Coordination, and patron of Nagaland Organic Konnect, Neiba Kronu said that infrastructure in the state will improve once the Indo-Naga talks are finalised.
According to him, people these days are changing, learning from the ‘outside world’ and hoped that ‘Naga youth will learn a lot’ from the event.
The vice president of IFOAM Asia and representative of Global Organic Textile Standard, Miyoshi Satoko said that they seek to promote organic agriculture and ensure ‘a sustainable world without stealing from the future generation’.