North-East has potential to be food sufficient: ICAR

Immense potential coupled with technology can boost crop production to make North-East self-sufficient in foodgrain by the year 2025, Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) has said.

"The foodgrain production deficit in the region is 13 per cent. By 2025, the region will need 11,326 million tonnes of foodgrain annually and the technology developed by ICAR can boost the production up to 11,315 million tonnes," ICAR's North East director S V Ngachan said.

The deficit in fruit production is 79 per cent, while that of vegetables is 73 per cent in the region, an ICAR assessment said.

Cautioning that the problem of deficit production of rice in North-East is going to be alarming if the current low productivity scenario continues, Ngachan said the research achievements and innovative technologies developed by ICAR need to be taken to the farmer's doorsteps.

He suggested the use of promising varieties of rice developed by the institute some of which have productivity potential as high as 6 tonnes per hectare as compared to the present average yield of 1.8 tonnes per hectare.

"There are 13 varieties of high yielding varieties of rice developed by the institute. These varieties can see a major jump in production," Ngachan said on the sidelines of a function at ICAR Research Complex on the outskirts of Shillong. 

He also pointed to the technology developed by the institute to make about 1 lakh hectare marshy land of the region productive.

"Different varieties of foodgrain and vegetables can be cultivated using sunken bed technology in these marshy lands," he said, even as he stressed on diversification of agriculture into the lentils and oilseed sector as well as mushroom and fish cultivation which have immense potential.

Ngachan also underlined that despite having 46 per cent of the total water resources in the country, less than 3 per cent have been used for irrigation in the region.

"The irrigation potential largely remains untapped and about 80 per cent of the cultivated area is rain fed," he said.

He also emphasised on the need for the technology transfer to the farmers to enhance crop production.