PASIGHAT, 3 Nov: An ‘international lecture’ on the topic ‘Plantation regimes in Northeast India’ was organised by the economics department of Jawaharlal Nehru College (JNC) here in East Siang district on Friday in the blended mode.
Roderick Wijunamai from Cornell University, New York, USA, who was the resource person, dwelt on issues pertaining to oil palm cultivation in Northeast India, and highlighted how the idea of making India self-reliant in edible oil production under the National Mission on Edible Oil – Oil Palm “is not happening in practice.”
Saying that “the gender aspect of such policies is very patriarchal in nature,” he stressed on “asking important questions like what is the main agenda behind such policy; who defines the value in the market; what kind of benefits the farmers get; and how does it impact the local economy.”
“Further, the government is unable to persuade big companies to set up industries because they are unable to speculate the profits from it, which causes a big loss to the farmers,” Wijunamai said.
“Therefore it is important to know the socioeconomic and cultural environment of the community before making any policies,” he said.
The programme was attended by JNC IQAC coordinator Dr DP Panda, JNC Economics HoD Nong Tayeng, and faculty members and students of the college.
“The programme was held with support from JNC Principal Dr Tasi Taloh, and it was coordinated by JNC Economics Assistant Professor Dr Apilang Apum,” the college informed in a release.
