The announcement of Horticulture Minister Tage Taki that the state government is serious about reviving the government-owned farms is music to the ears of the people of Arunachal. There are several government-owned farms which are either defunct or have failed to perform upto expectation. Unfortunately, a major chunk of land belonging to these farms has been heavily encroached on by the public. Now that the government has announced its serious intent to revive these farms, the people of the state will be hoping that it is done with utmost sincerity and proper planning.
With the mega food park coming up near Banderdewa, there will be a huge demand for produce in the coming years. The government-owned farms can play an important role to meet the demands. First of all, the state government should properly map the farms. In the areas where encroachment took place, the encroachers should be evicted at the earliest. Proper boundary walls or fencing should be constructed and strong action should be taken against those who have encroached. Also, modern tools should be used in these farms and labourers working in it have to be properly trained. The agriculture and horticulture departments should invest more money into research. It is seen that least priority is given to research, which has not helped the cause of the department and the farmers of the state. The more research the better it is going to serve the farmers.