Within two years of getting the official tag of India’s first organic state, Sikkim has now become a role model for others.
One eight-member team of officials from Puducherry Agriculture and Horticulture department reached Gangtok on Thursday to take lessons on organic practices adopted in Sikkim. In January 2016, Sikkim became India’s first “100 per cent organic” state.
The officials from Puducherry underwent training and were apprised on the journey of Sikkim’s organic mission. They met Sikkim’s Horticulture Secretary Khorlo Bhutia and expressed their gratitude for the overwhelming knowledge sharing on organic mission.
Bhutia gave a broad outline of the standard agricultural practices adopted in the transformation of Sikkim to a fully organic state. He briefed them about the entire journey of Sikkim organic mission.
Though tribal farmers in the other states in the northeast also produce their agricultural products without chemical fertilizers and pesticides, lack of proper certification has denied them the “organic” tag.
Bhutia said Sikkim has already completed the certification of agriculture and horticulture land, and is now entering the second phase for production and marketing of the produce. He said Puducherry can also adopt the Sikkim-model of farming and the farmers can benefit largely with the transformation.
The Horticulture Secretary said as all farming in Sikkim is carried out without the use of synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, people now have access to safer food choices and agriculture is more environment-friendly activity now.
The visiting officials from Puducherry said officials from Sikkim would soon be invited to Puducherry for a series of direct interactions with the farmers.