A National Institute of Organic Farming for India will be operational by the end of October, the country’s ministry of agriculture has announced.
The body will coordinate the promotion of organic production in India, training, the setting of standards and organising a system of certification and accreditation. It should have money to spend, as the Indian central government has earmarked Rs1bn (US$22m) for developing organic production for the domestic market.
In a statement to a symposium on organic farming, the ministry added that the “initial infrastructure” for the institute was ready and that India’s National Bio Fertiliser Development Centre would be rolled into the new organisation.