Tripura Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare Minister Ratan Lal Nath on Wednesday, June 17, said natural farming is essential for protecting agricultural land and restoring soil fertility, as the government intensifies efforts to promote sustainable farming practices across the State.

The Minister was speaking after inaugurating a district-level Khet Bachao Abhiyan and a workshop on natural farming at Ragna Higher Secondary School in Dharmanagar of North Tripura district.

Nath said the month-long campaign, being conducted across the country from June 1 to June 30, aims to encourage farmers to adopt natural farming methods and reduce dependence on chemical inputs.

"We can see that nature and the environment are changing. Agricultural land is gradually losing its fertility and becoming polluted. That is why we are now moving towards natural and organic farming," he said.

The Minister said around 5,000 hectares of land in Tripura are currently under natural farming and expressed confidence that the coverage would expand to 16,000 hectares by the end of the year.

He noted that before 2018, natural farming was not practised in the State and organic farming was limited to about 2,000 hectares. According to him, the area under organic farming has now expanded to more than 26,000 hectares.

Nath said excessive use of chemical fertilisers was adversely affecting soil health and argued that natural farming could ensure sustainable agricultural production while reducing cultivation costs for farmers.

The Minister said the government is encouraging wider public participation in the initiative and is urging public representatives who own agricultural land to adopt natural farming practices to motivate farmers.

He also said awareness programmes and meetings are being organised at the Panchayat, Panchayat Samiti and Zilla Parishad levels, with scientists from Krishi Vigyan Kendras participating in the outreach efforts.

Reiterating the government's commitment to farmers' welfare, Nath said various measures are being undertaken to support their overall development and strengthen the agricultural sector in the State.