APFDC for industry-farmer linkages

The Andhra Pradesh Forest Development Corporation Limited (APFDC) is gearing up to meet the long-felt need of medicinal farmers for marketing and buyback linkages with the industrial units.

APFDC has been involved in organic farming of medicinal and aromatic plants under the Vanaspathi Van programme of the central government. Of the various species of medicinal plants, Andhra Pradesh farmers burnt their fingers in the recent past by taking to safed musli cultivation on a large scale.

The main reason cited for their plight is lack of marketing support by any agency. Hence, the decision by APFDC to attend to this main issue, KS Rao, vice-chairman and managing director of APFDC, told Business Standard.

Rao said that the corporation was ready to play the role of a nodal agency for involving farmers in the cultivation of certain species of medicinal and aromatic plants.

It would also be linking the farmers with various small and medium companies operating in the area of Indian systems of medicine. During the current financial year, the corporation will also gear up to provide marketing intelligence to the farmers in the state, he said.

The government is also actively considering a proposal to make APFDC the nodal agency for expanding medicinal plant cultivation in Andhra Pradesh by involving various industrial units, Rao said.

APFDC is the only forest development corporation in the country to receive a direct funding of up to Rs 5 crore from the central government to promote medicinal and aromatic plants. An assistance of Rs 1.17 crore has been provided by the state forest department.

Under the Vanaspathi Van scheme for the promotion of Indian systems of medicine and homeopathy, the corporation is growing 14 varieties of plants in its nurseries. It has already brought 1,100 acres under both tree and plant varieties.

The tree varieties are aegle marmelos (maredu), emblica offcinalis (amla), sterculia urens (tapasi) and terminalia bellerica (karaka). Under the herbs and shrubs category, it is growing aloe vera (kalabanda), asparagus racemosus (satavari), cholorophytum borivilianum (safed musli), rauwolfia serpentina (asarpagandha) and withania somnifera (aswagandha).

"Having standardised nursery, cultivation, harvesting and processing techniques, the corporation is now keen on forging organised supplies of raw materials to the industries," Rao said, adding, "Industries would also be encouraged to venture into contract farming and corporate farming of medicinal plants. The corporation is already transferring plants raised at its nurseries. It is also rendering assistance to farmers in organic farming and post-harvest techniques."

Though the Vanaspathi Van project commenced in 2002, it has gained momentum only in the recent months with farmers actively taking up medicinal plants cultivation. The corporation now envisages extending the acreage to 3,000 acres in the next few years.

During the current financial year, the corporation plans to cover an area of 375 acres under emblica officinalis (amla) alone. The targets for other varieties are being finalised.

The plants are being raised in the degraded forest lands in the traditionally rich areas of Andhra Pradesh "" Eastern Ghats and Nallamalai Hill ranges. An area of 2,450 hectares in the Maredumilli zone of East Godavari district, ie, Eastern Ghats, and 550 hectares in Kurnool district covering parts of Nallamalai zone has been selected under the scheme.

At present, the corporation is undertaking an awareness campaign to involve the farmers in the areas of Eastern Ghats and Nallamalai zones in the medicinal plant cultivation.