Agricultural land under rice cultivation is on the decline. Farmers are turning their faces away from rice cultivation as it is no more remunerative. But rice is the staple food for over 65 per cent people of the country.
In order to give an entrepreneurial status to rice farming in Odisha, the Central Rice Research Institution (CRRI) here has come up with an innovative unit to look into the aspects of business, planning and development of rice growers. The Business Planning and Development (BPD) unit was launched on Saturday.
Director of New Delhi-based National Agricultural Innovative Project (NAIP) Dr Rama Rao said the BPD unit would go a long way in attracting rice farmers towards entrepreneurship. CRRI Director Dr T Mohapatra informed that the BPD unit is a World Bank-funded project.
Project Inspector Dr GAK Kumar said this unit would create an environment to foster integration of all stakeholders, including farm researchers, financial institutions, extension officers and marketing forces. The coordinated effort of the unit would develop a policy to promote profit-oriented, rice-based farming. He hoped that by giving rice farming an industrial status, the socioeconomic conditions of rice growers would get a major boost.
“The current minimum support price (MSP) of rice is only `1,320 per quintal, which is not encouraging,” Dr Kumar said. This is why farmers are moving away from rice cultivation.
If the trend is not arrested, the ambitious Food Security Bill would come a cropper, opined the speakers. They pointed out that the BPD unit, which would soon be registered as a company, would assume greater importance in creating ‘agro-preneurs’ among rice growers. The unit also aims to impart training in setting up agri-enterprises and their management. The unit would also look into production, finance, personnel and marketing aspects to create successful agri-preneurs.
“Once the unit is registered as a company, it will provide legal assistances to agri-preneurs,” said Dr Kumar.
With a view to popularising its inventions of farm techniques, the CRRI also organised a brainstorming discussion. Experts from banks, and farm engineering and farm scientists deliberated on a number of inventions of the institute which have potentiality to be converted into enterprises. They hoped that seed production of hybrid rice and high-yielding verities can be converted into enterprises. Manufacturing of farm implements like power tiller, cage wheels, conoweeders and power threshers can also be set up as small-scale industries to enhance economic status of farmers.