Cultivable land area of no less than 500 hectares in Dimapur have been proposed to be taken-up for the double-cropping with linseed, mustard and winter maize, in yet another move towards securing self-sufficiency in the district.
An interface of Agri and allied sectors, comprising of 8 government departments and 4 NGOs, held here today at the conference hall of DC Dimapur’s office chalked out the proposal and decided that it would be “finalized after discussion with DAO Dimapur.”
The meeting identified farmlands in Niuland block and Dhansiripar block as areas to implement the proposed 500 ha double-cropping project.
Another strategy suggested to help achieve self-sufficiency was to replace 20% to 30% of cultivable area by high yielding crop varieties and hybrids in cereals, pulses, oilseeds vegetables for the next 5-6 years to meet the demand of food grains of a growing population.
Similarly, improvement of indigenous animals for better milk, meat & egg production and introduction of suitable new breeds were suggested. Proper animal health care like vaccination, feed management and medication were also advised to be taken care of.
Program coordinator of KVK Dimapur, Dr Anamika Sharma gave a brief profile of the per capita availability of food in Dimapur. (See Table)
Per capita availability of food (Dimapur):
Rice is 444.88 g/day
Pulses 11.61 g/day
Oilseeds 19.90 g/day
Sugar 24.51 g/day
Vegetables 548.03 g/day
Fruits 224.58 g/day
Milk 107.67 g/day
Meat 93.92 g/day
Egg 0.11 no/day
Dimapur district is deficient in food grain production by 7639.84MT in rice, 7189.94 MT in pulses, 2786.63 MT in oilseed, 73.04 MT in milk and 148120 no of eggs.
“The district is self sufficient in sugarcane production, vegetables and fruits but there are no avenues for value addition or processing of sugar/ vegetables and fruits in the district,” she observed.
DC Dimapur N Hushili Sema and chief guest of the meeting, underscored the need for proper marketing channels and pricing of the produce. She felt that farmers should be rewarded for their own produce.
Hushili encouraged the various departments under Agri sector to work not in isolation but together. “And as Dimapurians, we should be the pioneers, the standard bearers,” she remarked.
The meeting was organized by KVK Dimapur, ICAR Research Complex for NEH Region, Nagaland Centre, Jharnapani.