The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) India has lauded the districts of Chandauli and Sonbhadra in Uttar Pradesh as aspirational districts and deemed them as a very successful model of local area development that should serve as a best practice for several other states.
The report, officials on Saturday said, had praised Chandauli district, known as the rice bowl of eastern UP which decided to experiment with the cultivation of black rice, due to its high demand in global markets and good profit margins. The project was a success and high-quality black rice is now being exported to Australia and New Zealand. The option to export black rice to other countries is also being explored.
The current development is in line with UP Export Policy 2020-25 which aims at doubling the income of farmers and increasing exports from the agricultural sector and encouraging the ‘Make In India’ brand of the country.
Black rice as such is not native to the Chandauli area but given tits increasing demand in the global market, the district administration has promoted the product among a small group of 300 farmers. The rice is priced at Rs 200 per kg which is double that of normal rice sold in the local market. The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) has been motivating more farmers to grow black rice as the soil of Chandauli district is very favourable for paddy farming.
Black rice is also cultivated in eight development blocks of Mirzapur district -- Narayanpur, Jamalpur, Chanbe, Rajgarh, Pahari, Lalganj and Halia. Eating black rice protects against cancer, as it has antioxidant properties. The outermost layer of the rice contains one of the highest levels of anthocyanins. This rice is also beneficial for diabetes.
The report has also named Chandauli and Sonbhadra in the top five districts with maximum change in net resilience since 2018.
The report also appreciated the delta rankings provided on the programme’s Champions of Change dashboard. Chandauli and Sonbhadra (Uttar Pradesh) among others were found to have progressed the most since the beginning of the programme.
The UNDP report is based on quantitative analysis of publicly available data as well as interviews with various stakeholders, including district magistrates, central prabhari officers, district fellows and other development partners.
The aspirational districts programme was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in January 2018 as a part of the government’s effort to raise the living standards of the people and ensure inclusive growth for all, ‘Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas’.