More than 25 stalls featuring various produces catered to the organic appetite of visitors at a first-of-its-kind organic fair in the Capital
BHUBANESWAR: A first-of-its-kind organic fair was organised by Press Club of Odisha on its premises here Sunday.Saurabh Garg (IAS) principal secretary, Agriculture and Farmers empowerment department, was the chief guest of the occasion.
Editor, Orissa POST & Dharitri and chairman, Press Club of Odisha, Tathagata Satpathy, father-daughter duo Padma Shri Radhamohan Gadanayak and Padma Shri Sabarmati, Ajay Singh Rajput regional director, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Govt of India, secretary, Press Club of Odisha, Annapurna Dash graced the event.
More than 25 stalls were put up by various organic farmers at the fair. Pelican Aeroponics farm (specialised in soilless organic farming), Agri Clinic & Agri business centre, Parashar Farmer Cooperative, (Niali), Kalinga Honey, Hydro valley, Prakruti (Dhenkanal), Utopia Ville, CHE Farm, Kandhamal Farmers Producer Company Limited, Auraa Greens, Prerana Stroth, Kitchen Garden Association were some of the attractions at the event.
Visitors were particularly impressed by Ajawain ginger chocolates by When Flavours Meet, Suan Kheeri by Kandhamal Farmers ltd, organic veggies by CHE Farms, lettuce leaves by Hydro valley and Black rice ladoos by Prerana Stroth.
Saurabh Garg said, “Shri Tathagata Satpathy floated the idea to organise an organic fair. It is a wonderful place for buyers and sellers. The government will support his team immensely. We will also help the sellers. Under PKVY (Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana), more than 20,000 hectre in the state is being used for organic farming.”
“We will soon conduct programmes like these in every district. I am thankful to Mr Satpathy for this initiative. We are also planning to provide technical support to urban gardeners and farmers soon,” he added.
Chief speaker Ajay Singh Rajput said, “People should follow organic farming in more numbers. There should be a distinctive market for organic farmers where their produce would fetch them premium price. Urban farming has evolved as a ray of hope for people living in urban areas. ‘O’ in Odisha stands for organic and there are many opportunities for this multi-cropping process. More farmers should adopt this healthy way of farming.”
Radhamohan said, “Our environment is facing a drastic situation. Organic fair, which is a novel initiative, will soon bear the fruits of success. Change in lifestyle and alternate farming processes will definitely keep everyone healthy.” His daughter Sabarmati also stressed on the need to adopt organic farming.
“After 30 years of research, I found that people are bargaining while buying vegetables whereas they don’t do the same at a cosmetic shop. Press Club is the perfect platform where organic vegetables and fruits are being sold and bought without any hassle. We should all vow not to eat poisonous veggies or produce them. If we have a different market for organic produces, people will start eating organic food. Everyone must create their own food space,” she said.
While conveying the vote of thanks, Tathagata Satpathy said, “I want no one to visit a hospital in 2020. Everyone should adopt a healthy lifestyle by consuming organic produces. We will organise such fairs on the second Sunday of every month from now on.”
Go Green
- Pelican Aeroponics Farm, Agri Clinic & Agri Business Centre, Parashar Farmer Cooperative (Niali), Kalinga Honey, Hydro valley and CHE Farm were major attractions of the event
- Visitors were particularly impressed by Ajawain ginger chocolates by When Flavours Meet, Suan Kheeri by Kandhamal Farmers ltd and organic veggies by CHE Farms
Quote
I want no one to visit a hospital in the next five years. Everyone should adopt a healthy lifestyle by consuming organic produces. We will organise such fairs on the second Sunday of every month from now on
Tathagata Satpathy organiser
