Vidisha: Union Agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Sunday ordered a probe into seeds supplied to farmers following complaints of these not germinating.
During an outreach programme here, which is his home turf, Chouhan visited a farm and dug out seeds to check first hand about complaints of low germination rates, leading to failed crops. “I will get a probe done into the quality of these seeds. The persons, firms, societies involved in supplying such seeds will face strict action. Prevailing laws will be amended to give them more teeth to tackle the sale of spurious seeds and pesticides,” Chouhan told farmers in Ganjbasoda, some 40 kilometres from the district headquarters.
“Many farmers complained to me they had sown soybean seeds, which did not germinate. The farmer’s sowing efforts have been wasted due to substandard seeds. In a nutshell, crops were ruined. This is a betrayal of our food providers,” he said.
Local farmers blamed the problem on spurious seeds being given by local suppliers.
“In many places in MP, the germination of seeds has not taken place. It is my duty to see the condition in other parts of the country as well,” Chouhan
added.