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Friday, March 29, 2024

Govt focus on promotion, marketing to improve rural economy

We are working through SHGs because under the programme, we organise self-help groups and farmer groups who are producing spices, bay leaf, and other high-value crops. Under the programme, there is a support for marketing as well as facilitating some kind of Minimum Support Price (MSP) for those products.

SHILLONG:

The state government is working on improving the rural economy by promoting key produce in addition to ensuring that these are marketed and self-help groups (SHGs) get the maximum benefit from the Pradhan Mantri Van Dhan Vikas Yojana. The scheme was launched on April 14, 2018, with an aim to improve the tribal economy.

The Principal Secretary of Community and Rural Development, P Sampath Kumar said that the state government is trying to take advantage of the Van Dhan scheme by promoting various produce from the forest and tribal areas as well as other products. He informed that women SHGs, and farmer groups are going to play a very important role in the programme and in this connection a cluster of SHGs has been identified.

Informing that the Van Dhan Yojana is an important scheme of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, he told The Meghalayan,  “We are working through SHGs because under the programme, we organise self-help groups and farmer groups who are producing spices, bay leaf, and other high-value crops. Under the programme, there is a support for marketing as well as facilitating some kind of Minimum Support Price (MSP) for those products. We are working closely with TRIFED and other organisations.”

He pointed out that the benefit is additional support for farmerss’ collectives.
Kumar said, “They (the SHGs and farmer groups) would take advantage of the additional support so that they can market their produce.”
Asked about finance, he said it will not be a problem and the SHGs can easily get access.
To ensure that there is no interference of middlemen, the SHGs will be provided with additional support to market their produce.
“Through this programme, it is not only finance but additional support will be provided to market the product so that middlemen can be cut down and they can directly approach the market,” Kumar said.

The process of Van Dhan Yojana

Meanwhile, the Project Manager of Meghalaya State Rural Livelihood Society (MSRLS), Rinky Kyndait said, “We begin the identification with the availability of natural resources because Van Dhan Yojana itself looks at the minor forest produce but with the flexibility that we have in Van Dhan we can have flori, agri, horti activities as well, so the SHGs, say for example in West Garo Hills, North Garo Hills, Ri Bhoi, East Khasi Hills, Eastern West Khasi Hills, and Jaintia Hills, that are spread across the state as of now,” she said.
The SHGs are already part of National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM), and are currently federated under Van Dhan Vikas Kendra where there are 300 members who come under one cluster. The ideal implementation stage is where the SHGs come together, and the identification of the products takes place.

Key products

Kyndait said, “As of now, we have identified key products. For example, for West Jaintia Hills we have Lakadong, gooseberry, wild apple, hill broom grass, then for East Khasi Hills, we have bay leaves, hill broom grass, mushroom as the key products which will be promoted under Van Dhan. For Ri Bhoi, it is handloom, pineapple, ginger and hill broom grass. These are few commodities and products which have been identified. However, the flexibility in terms of incorporating new items, say if people want to do value addition of an existing product are permissible.”

She informed that in Van Dhan, ideally a cluster of 300 members receive a grant of Rs 15 lakhs from TRIFED. “The amount is used in training, capacity building, infrastructural development, advocacy programme. After these activities are rolled out, we in line ourselves with the other sub-schemes, the horticulture department has something similar to certification, she added.

ALSO READhttps://themeghalayan.com/mawkhar-looks-back-in-time/

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