Digambar Shinde, Loksatta

Sangli According to the meteorological department, the monsoon season is expected to be good this year. The surveillance team raided the seed packing center of Garud Seeds in Islampur and seized fake soya beans worth Rs 23.50 lakh. This has exposed the continuing scourge of agricultural inputs. Although there are large squads to stop this type of activity, it is clear that these squads are not responsible for these scams.

In rural areas, preparations for the kharif start from the end of May. Planting of kharif is estimated to be done in 4 lakh area of ​​21 thousand hectares in the district this year. Given the increase in the market price of soybeans, the planting of this crop is likely to increase this season. An area of ​​51,800 hectares has been set aside for soybeans in the district. Summer soybeans were planted on approximately fifteen hundred acres. However, soybeans came out of nowhere, but not peanuts. The soybean was wasted because there was no flowering. The Department of Agriculture is currently studying why this crisis has occurred despite the use of certified seeds. The crop was not plowed, however the plow had to be plowed to clear the next crop. The tractor had to be put into vertical farming. Although the seed company is responsible for this, the company is trying to get rid of it after discovering that the cause is the increase in temperature.

There is a saying in rural areas, ‘Save the mud, cover it and plant’. Because everything next year depends on this season. So the farmers are taking the seed at the rate the company will get. During the kharif season, due to lack of cash flow among farmers, many people resort to planting by buying seeds on credit. Taking advantage of this situation, farmers are sowing false and uncertified seeds. To take advantage of the farmers’ vulnerability, the seed companies, the fertilizer companies do their business at the village level holding someone’s hand, like an umbrella grows against the rain. If seed germination is good, then agripharmaceutical companies should not be caught in the clutches of the disease.

Fake drugs come to the fore. In this, only farmers are involved.

The seeds seized in Islampur were not only certified but also untested. The soybeans, which are sold at Rs 60-70 per kg in the wholesale market, are screened and sold at Rs 180 per kg. In other words, it was a business to get triple the profit per kilo. 25 to 30 kg of seed per acre are required. That is, by sowing seeds of Rs. Considering the level of fraud, the need to address the system that controls it is underlined. In the same way that Hyderabad manufactured agricultural drugs, pesticides are supplied in large quantities from rural agricultural centers.

It is. Its quality and effectiveness control facility is not available even at the district level. As soon as the damage is done, the white elephant moves, until the next season, everything is fine, the company whose production and sale have been banned, is ready to return to the market with a new name.

To supply farmers with fertilizer and seeds at reasonable prices through the Farm Service Centre, 11 teams have been deployed in each taluka and one at the district level. The licenses of 11 agricultural service centers have been suspended for irregularities in the sale of seeds and urea. The Department of Agriculture is making efforts to provide suitable seeds and suitable chemical fertilizers for planting in this kharif season.

– Vinayak Pawar, District Agricultural Development Officer.