KANNUR: Efforts to enhance agricultural productivity under the Central government’s New India Movement are under way in the district with technical support from Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Kannur. The initiative aims at doubling farmers’ income by 2022.
A seven-point development plan for the programme was released by District Panchayat President K.V. Sumesh. Infrastructure facilities with special emphasis on soil health management, aquaculture, dairying, good agricultural practices, e-marketing, value-addition, processing, quality seeds, and institutional loans will be covered under the programme. It envisages an integrated farming system with stress on result-oriented management concepts.
KVK programme co-ordinator Jayaraj said a similar programme had already been initiated in the Taliparamnba Assembly constituency. The protocol developed for various agricultural enterprises by KVK is being utilised to realise the target of profitable and sustainable agricultural production, with the support of local bodies and the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD).
Food grain production
“The programme for self-sufficiency in food grain production, with the involvement of Mayyil Rice Producer Company, is already on at Mayyil here,” he said, adding that 1,400 acres of paddy field were being revived through farmer participatory mode under the programme.
Meanwhile, the Society for Pepper Improvement through Sustainable Employment (SPISE) was launched in Cheruthazham panchayat on Friday. T.V. Rajesh, MLA, inaugurated the society.
SPISE plans to double the productivity of black pepper in the panchayat through a systematic protocol-based approach in each household. A 15-member team trained by KVK will serve as service providers and executors of all available technologies for pepper growers, he said.
