New agri project to take off in Kuttanad by April

ALAPPUZHA: A Rs 12.55-crore project to introduce good farming practices in Kuttanad, including  rooting out  banned pesticides on the ground and promoting indigenous and innovative techniques, may be implemented in April. The plan was submitted to the government by the agriculture department in November last, but it could not be taken up so far due to funds crunch,  said Mr A. G. Abdul Kareem, principal agricultural officer. The comprehensive project has been accepted by the government in principle, but it requires huge funding, he said.  

The project was designed as part of the government’s Harithak-eralam initiative  with a deadline of  five years.     “The farmers will be turned into eco-friendly master farmers  and  be informed of  pest management.   The project will coordinate the geographical indication registry for Kuttanad rice and Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) certification for the farm produce,” he said. The relevance of the project comes at a time when the multi- crore  Kuttanad package was left to wither away.  Agriculture Minister V.S. Sunilkumar after visiting Kuttanad in July last had announced that the government would implement a mini-Kuttanad project, for which the agriculture department had submitted the plan.

The pest proliferation across paddyfields  has  caused  heavy loss to paddy production in many parts of Kuttanad.  Therefore, the project is indispensable for the rice bowl of central Kerala.     It will be implemented in  32 panchayats  in Alappuzha district, 27 in Kottayam and five in Pathanamthitta.   As part of pest management, different methods will be adopted,  including demonstration plots, campaigning, community radio, automation in spraying operations, popularisation of seed drum, production of bio-pesticides, bio-fertilisers and bio-control agents, trico-cards, drones and  light traps.