- September 12, 2017
HOPLESS DEVELOPMENT OF SOIL HEALTH CARD
GUWAHATI—(THE SENTINEL)——-At a time when the buzzword is organic farming following the Centre’s push, it has emerged that many farmers in Assam do not even have soil health cards (SHCs).
On February 17, 2015, the Centre had launched the Rs 568-crore Soil Health Card (SHC) scheme under the Union Ministry of Agriculture.
The scheme was launched based on the slogan ‘Swasth Dhara, Khet Hara’ (Healthy Soil, Green Crop fields).
Assam ——–
is an agrarian State, and as such this scheme is of vital importance where over 70 per cent of its population is directly dependent on agriculture.
In cycle-I –
The scheme for fiscals 2015-16 and 2016-17, Assam is the third worst performer in the country in distribution of SHCs as on August 22, 2017.
The State has distributed only 10.25 per cent SHCs. The worst performer in this parameter is Manipur with 4.67 per cent distribution of SHCs, followed by Arunachal Pradesh with 9.87 per cent.
Assam had the target of collecting 2,78,707 soil samples for testing and met the collection target.
However, for reasons best known to the Department of Agriculture in the State, only 79,712 i.e. 28.6 per cent of the collected samples were tested and SHCs were given to only 1,57,970 farmers.
In Manipur—-
collected 20,713 soil samples as targeted. However, only 6,380 of these (30.8 per cent) were tested and cards were given to only 5,351 farmers.
***** In the same manner *****
In Arunachal Pradesh—-
collected 20,532 samples as targeted and tested 19,001 samples (92.54 per cent). However, only 11,200 farmers got cards.
In Mizoram———-
collection of samples stood at targeted 11,986, while 10,262 samples (85.62 per cent) were tested, but leading to issuance of SHCs to 8,216 i.e. 68.55 per cent farmers.
Meghalaya, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura – were successful in providing 100 per cent SHCs to farmers.
in cycle-II—–
Meghalaya from the Northeast has shown good performance by providing SHCs to as many as 24,067 farmers, which is computed at 22.97 per cent.
Strangely enough, none of the farmers in other seven States in NE region has got SHCs as yet in this cycle.
The sample collection target set by Assam is 1,39,354 and the number SHCs to be issued is 13,60,112.
However, not a single sample has been collected by the Department in this cycle as yet, and as such the question of issuance of SHCs does not arise.
The situation is no different in Manipur, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim.
In Tripura, Nagaland and Mizoram, there have been collection and testing of soil samples to an extent but no card has been issued.
(EDITED BY SHAILESH KUMAR)
