Una, December 20. A district level society will be formed in Una district to protect the interests of farmers and gardeners and ensure economic prosperity. This society will include Farmer Producer Organizations (FPO), Cluster Level Federation and other stakeholders Deputy Commissioner Jatin Lal said this important thing in a meeting with the farmers, FPO operators and self-help groups of the district on Friday.

Una brand of food products will become identity
Under this initiative, Una district will have its own food product brand. Processing, packaging and marketing of other agricultural products including potatoes will be done on the basis of international standards and modern practices. Initially, the focus will be on products like potatoes, coarse grains and dragon fruit. This will increase the income of farmers and Una district will get a new identity.

'Model Agreement Document' will protect farmers from fraud
The Deputy Commissioner said that the administration will prepare a 'model agreement document' to protect the farmers of the district from fraud. A committee constituted under the chairmanship of ADC will prepare this document. The committee will include Deputy Directors of Agriculture, Horticulture departments, APMC Secretary and DRDA Project Officer. This document will be made available at the panchayat level so that transparent and secure settlements can be made between the farmer and the buyer. This will also facilitate police action in payment disputes.

Emphasis on increasing the scope of FPO
Emphasizing on connecting farmers with FPO (Farmer Producer Organizations), the Deputy Commissioner said that the scope of FPO will be increased. An organized strategy will be prepared for this so that farmers can get maximum benefit from it.

Efforts of CRIP Satellite Centre at Una
Jatin Lal said that high-level efforts will be made to establish a satellite center of Central Research Institute of Potato (CRIP) in Una district. This will make it possible to produce seeds of different varieties of potatoes in the district and farmers will benefit from it.

Processing units should be set up in rural livelihood centers
The Deputy Commissioner stressed the need to set up food processing units in the Rural Livelihood Center built at a cost of Rs 10 crore in Thanakalan of Bangana subdivision. This will enable processing and value addition of various agricultural products grown in the district.

Government is committed to the prosperity of farmers
It is noteworthy that the Himachal government under the leadership of Chief Minister Thakur Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu is constantly striving for the prosperity of farmers and strengthening the agricultural economy. Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri has given instructions to promote potato-based economy. He said that just like the apple-based economy is being promoted, the The state has achieved success in economy, similarly the potato based economy in Una will be taken to new heights.

Una's potato is the pride of the state
Una district is famous throughout the state for its large scale cultivation of potatoes and its high quality. Potato is cultivated here in both Rabi and Kharif seasons, which is sent to the markets of Himachal as well as across the country.

Farmers' suggestions in open dialogue
Farmers and stakeholders shared their experiences and suggestions in the meeting. Representatives of PepsiCo company informed about their model of cultivating different varieties of potatoes and purchasing from farmers. Superintendent of Police Rakesh Singh and Additional Deputy Commissioner Mahendra Pal Gurjar interacted with the farmers. Gave suggestions regarding concrete arrangements to protect the interests.
Deputy Director of Agriculture Dr. Kulbhushan Dhiman, Deputy Director of Horticulture Dr. K.K. Bhardwaj, DRDA Project Officer K.L. Verma, APMC Secretary Bhupendra Singh, CPO Sanjay Sankhyan, FPO, Cluster Federation members and other stakeholders were present in the meeting.