Arunachal women farmers, SHGs start supplying fruits and vegetables to army personnel posted in the state

The fruits and vegetables were dispatched for army personnel posted in Bolung in Lower Dibang Valley and Chug village in West Kameng

Army personnel posted in Arunachal Pradesh got their first consignment of fresh fruits and vegetables grown by women farmers and Self Help Groups (SHGs) in the state with Chief Minister Pema Khandu virtually flagging off the project on Tuesday.

The fruits and vegetables were dispatched for army personnel posted in Bolung in Lower Dibang Valley, Chug village in West Kameng and Gunanagar in Namsai district, on Tuesday.

The project, named Mission Krishi Veer, seeks to supply fresh fruits and vegetables to the army personnel directly from farmers in the frontier state.

"The Indian Army and paramilitary forces have a huge presence in the state and require huge quantities of fruits and vegetables for daily consumption. Till now they have been procuring their demands from other states as there is no proper system in our state for such purchases in bulk. I have always believed that if the forces could be made customers of our local products, it would hugely benefit our farmers,” Khandu said while flagging off the first consignment.

Arunachal Pradesh Marketing Board (APMB) Arunachal State Rural Livelihood Mission and Tawang and Jang LAMPS signed an MoU recently to involve the SHGs and women farmer groups in order to supply fruits and vegetables to the army personnel as per the quality parameters. The fruits and vegetables are to be grown organically and without the use of any chemicals.

"Let’s begin with a small step as the Indian Army is quite strict with quality. Slowly as the system falls in place, we can go for the supply of all other products including meat, fish, eggs, milk,” the CM said.

Agriculture Minister Tage Taki said that the new initiative would prove a boon to local farmers by bringing markets to their doorstep, besides strengthening the brotherhood among the soldiers and civilians.

Nearly 50,000 soldiers are deployed in the Kameng sector (China border) and another 50,000 in the rest of Arunachal Pradesh.

APMB CEO Okit Palling stated that the army requires around 17 tons of fruits and 23 tons of vegetables daily but only 8 to 10 per cent is sourced from Arunachal Pradesh. Arunachal Pradesh has 1.17 lakh farmers who grow 330 tons of fruits and 390 tons of vegetables daily.

The state government has placed a revolving fund of Rs 4 Crore to mobilize the Mission Krishi-Veer.