Aizawl, Aug 28 : The Mizoram government has procured over 3 lakh quintals of ginger worth over Rs 95 crore from farmers under the state’s flagship programme ‘Bana Kaih’ or handholding scheme, state Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare minister PC Vanlalruata informed the Assembly on Thursday.
He said the government received only Rs 12.78 crore by selling the produce to companies.
Replying to questions from members during the monsoon session, Vanlalruata said the government has been making efforts to uplift farmers under the Bana Kaih programme.
“The government bought 3.45 lakh quintals of ginger from the farmers between January 20 and June 30 this year under the handholding scheme,” he said.
The minister added that the government has so far spent or released Rs 95.28 crore as support price for the purchase of raw ginger, while about Rs 45 crore is still pending for release to farmers.
According to the minister, the government purchased ginger at Rs 50 per kg at designated secondary collection centres and the procured stock was sold to companies through an auction system, with preference given to the highest bidders.
However, the government received only Rs 12.78 crore in return from these sales.
Vanlalruata said the government faced challenges in procuring farmers, noting that some non-ginger farmers had allegedly bought ginger from Myanmar and sold it to the government to make some profits.
He said assistance has been sought from the Centre under the Market Intervention Scheme (MIS), and assured that the pending payments would be released to farmers soon.
Purchasing five key crops — ginger, turmeric, chilli, broomsticks, and unhusked rice — was a major poll plank of the ruling Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM).
These crops were brought under the Bana Kaih scheme, which was launched in September 2024.
For the 2025–26 fiscal year, the government has allocated Rs 350 crore for the scheme — a 75 per cent increase from Rs 200 crore in 2024–25. (PTI)
