Yogi govt aims to make farmers self-reliant with medicinal farming

New Delhi: As a part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Self-Reliant India’ mission, the Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh government has made major preparations to promote medicinal farming in the state.

Following the correct ways of medicinal farming can really cut down the investment and maximise the income of the farmers in a short span of time.

The UP government has prepared an exhaustive plan for the same. After the pilot project in Bundelkhand, efforts have been intensified to provide benefits to the farmers of Purvanchal. The government is also trying to promote medicinal farming in other districts like Meerut, Mathura, and Firozabad.

To make Purvanchal the most prosperous region, recently CM Yogi has gifted many big schemes for its development. In these schemes, medicinal farming was also asked to get started at the grassroots level in the interest of farmers.
Taking it forward, the Horticulture Department is making every effort to promote medicinal farming as per the intention of the government. The department is also trying to build the interest of farmers in medicinal farming.

Large numbers of farmers in Gorakhpur have shown keen interest in growing Tulsi, Aloe vera, Ashwagandha, Brahmi, Shatavari, Kalmegh, and Sarpagandha and are also preparing nurseries for these plants.

The National Medicinal Plants Mission scheme of the Department of Horticulture and Food Processing has proved to be very effective in promoting medicinal farming. Dr. VB Dwivedi, Nodal Officer of State AYUSH Mission and Joint Director of Horticulture and Food Processing Department, informed that medicinal cultivation has been increased to 9705 hectares in the state, benefitting over 15000 farmers. The UP government has also been encouraging farmers to diversify crops for cultivation in order to enhance their incomes.

The government is constantly trying to promote medicinal farming in other districts of the state as well.