YAZALI, 30 May: The two-day ‘Arunachal Pradesh Jaiv Vividhata and Mvm Liid Soonam/Beej Utsav’ concluded here in Lower Subansiri district on Friday with a unified call for seed sovereignty, ecological preservation, community-led agribusiness and sustainable policy implementation.
Farmers, policymakers, scientists and youth representatives attended the valedictory session, hosted by MS Swaminthan Research Foundation (MSSRF) chairperson Dr Soumya Swaminathan.
MSSRF biodiversity programme director ED Israel Oliver King emphasised the urgent need to bridge scientific frameworks with indigenous knowledge to protect local seed lineages from climate disruptions.
Farmer representative-cum-HGB Likha Tado spoke on environmental degradation due to climate change.
“Rivers have shrunk, streams have narrowed and trees in the high hills are rotting due compound effects of global warming and micro-climatic shifts,”he said, and stressed the need to safeguard indigenous food gathering and medicinal plants.
Tado lauded Yachuli MLA Toko Tatung for organising the consultation.
Another farmer representative, Hage Tado Nanya from Hari village, said she started preserving indigenous seed varieties after observing their alarming decline in 1990. She brought a collection of 17 traditional seed varieties to the conclave and said that her seed bank’s door is open to all indigenous communities. Nanya warned the younger generation against blindly abandoning staples in search of modern crops.
Youth representative Tarh Tadam called for well-structured and administratively supported farming systems to deal with unpredictable monsoon.
MLA Tatung pledged that the voices of youths and the seed preservation models shared by Nanya would form the core of his local policy agenda. He committed to working closely with administrative bodies to ensure that agricultural funding, NABARD training and sustainable infrastructure roadmaps are executed transparently at the village level.
Mebo MLA Oken Tayeng pledged legislative backing for inter-district cooperation and policy convergence to protect indigenous seed lineages and build structural economic safety nets to transform farming into a secure profession.
Principal Chief Conservator of Forests P Subramanian proposed planting two to four wild indigenous fruit trees in every village and voluntary farmer-to-farmer seed exchange meets every month or two to exchange seeds. He also called for documenting local traditional foods.
The PCCF further urged the MLAs to establish a community radio station with central government subsidy in the district to broadcast biodiversity and livelihood advice in local languages and dialects.
NABARD Assistant General Manager Varaprasada K Kuppli expressed the bank’s willingness to partner with local NGOs to expand Jeeva natural farming models across the region and provide training.
Swaminathan reaffirmed the MSSRF’s support to scale up nature-based solutions and build long-term climate resilience.
