Letters to the Editor: PM’s Austerity Push

PM’s austerity push

Every true Indian must wholeheartedly welcome PM Narendra Modiji's pragmatic appeal to the people for moderating fertilizers' consumption and reducing consumption of petrol and diesel in the wake of the ongoing West Asia crisis. The May 12 editorial: ‘NE's lead in PM's austerity push' has rightly highlighted that the NE region is the glaring example of the age-old practice of organic farming to build sustainability, self-reliance, and balance soil health.

The agricultural production system in NE's states, viz. Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland and Sikkim, doesn't pose a challenge. Most of the upland areas under shifting cultivation (jhum) are organic by default, and use of pesticides is relatively low. It must be mentioned here that NER has a potential of about 47 million tonnes of organic manure, including 37 million tonnes from animal excreta and 10 million tonnes from crop residues. The traditional eco-friendly agricultural practice in the biodiversity hotspot NE needs a farmer-friendly organic certification system.  Now, the central government must focus on incentivising organic farming towards building resilience of the country's agriculture sector against external shocks such as climate change impact and agricultural inputs availability. Let us follow the pathway to an organic transition to make ourselves disease-free, happy, and energetic social beings.

Iqbal Saikia,

Guwahati.