Satinder Kumar Bhalla, Secretary NEC Secretary NEC, while visiting coffee plantation site and Hi-Tech Washing Station sites and interacting with the farmers under Touphema Cluster on October 2. (DIPR Photo)
Tuophema, October 2 (MExN): North Eastern Council (NEC) Secretary Satinder Kumar Bhalla on Friday said coffee development must go beyond planting and include roads, modern processing, post-harvest infrastructure, quality assurance, value addition and export linkages if it is to be commercially viable.
Bhalla visited Tuophema village in Nagaland to review progress under the Coffee USP Project. He inspected plantation sites and the Hi-Tech Coffee Washing Station, and interacted with growers of the Tuophema Cluster, stated a DIPR report.
“Coffee development cannot be limited to planting coffee trees alone,” he said. He termed the project as an integrated livelihood and economic development programme, not merely a plantation initiative, aimed at helping villages and clusters draw greater value from local natural and human resources.
The larger goal, he said, is to create “sustainable livelihoods and enable communities to access better education, healthcare, modern amenities and improved quality of life”, contributing to the vision of a Viksit Bharat by 2047.
Bhalla said the Government of India is committed to the prosperity of every citizen, and that the chief ministers of the northeastern states have collectively evolved strategies to help farmers raise their incomes substantially. He said achieving this would need the combined efforts of the Centre, the Nagaland government, the Coffee Board, local administration, farmers, technical institutions and the private sector.
He asked the state government and the Coffee Board to engage central agricultural institutions to identify suitable intercrops and complementary activities for coffee plantations. “Such diversification would improve land productivity and provide farmers with additional sources of income while strengthening the overall economic viability of coffee cultivation,” he said.
Bhalla assured farmers that water harvesting, mechanisation, new technologies and appropriate equipment would be examined. He also urged the local administration to engage industrial houses, investors and exporters who could support mechanisation and automation in the sector through suitable financial and institutional arrangements.
He praised Vibei Kense, the youngest coffee grower, who travelled to Vietnam and obtained specialised certification in coffee, saying such initiatives would build local expertise.
Principal Secretary and Development Commissioner of Nagaland Y Kikheto Sema said coffee cultivation initiatives in the state date back to 1981 but could not realise their full economic potential due to limited awareness, inadequate market linkages and other constraints.
He encouraged farmers to adopt a diversified approach, including growing black pepper and other suitable crops alongside coffee wherever technically feasible, saying diversification and value addition could boost incomes and create jobs for youth.
Speaking on behalf of the growers, Village Council Chairman Pfuduolhou Kense thanked the Nagaland government and the NEC for providing coffee saplings and financial assistance to the cluster.
He raised concerns regarding the shortage and high cost of labour for weeding and harvesting, and sought brush cutters and suitable harvesting equipment. He also pointed to a shortage of water for irrigation and post-harvest processing, and requested water harvesting structures, storage tanks, irrigation facilities and other water-management systems. Adequate water, he said, is critical for coffee productivity and quality, especially in dry spells and during processing.
Bhalla was accompanied by Dr Sentitula, IFS, Director (Tourism and Industries), NEC; Director and Additional Director of the state's Department of Land Resources; and a team of officers from NEC and other departments. Short speeches were also delivered by Sentitula; Hekato N, Additional Director and Project Director, Coffee, Nagaland USP; Albert Ngullie, CEO of State Level Nodal Agency and Director of Land Resources; and Dr Menuosietuo, District Project Officer, Kohima, Land Resources Department.
