Govt notification mandating new packing regulations worry seed companies

Ajeet Mulay, managing director of Green Golds Seeds, a major seed player in the business, said while there is no problem in inserting both the printed literature and the QR code, the timing of the circular is wrong. “The cycle for us starts in November- December when we send out the packets for printing. Packing of seeds starts in March, with dispatch starting early in April. Thus, at present, companies are caught between the devil and the deep sea as some of the consignments are already shipped out or in the process of doing so.”

Industry estimates say that India reports sales of around six crore packets of cotton, three crore packets of maize and two crore packets of rice seed during the kharif season. Also, around 50-60 crores packets of vegetable seeds are sold during this period. Thus, companies say they would find it difficult to comply with the notification at such a short notice because of the logistics involved.

The central government’s diktat is meant to help farmers get the best out of the seeds viz usage of fertilizers and pesticides and in terms of timing as well as. Farmers are guided as per package of practices set out by the state agricultural universities. India being a multilingual country, companies include these in multiple languages.
Thus, Mulay said, they would print or embed practices in Odiya for seed meant for the Odisha market and the same would be done in Marathi for seed packets to be sold in Maharashtra.

Vipin Kalsiwal, president of Maharashtra Seed Manufacturers Association, said the circular comes even as the packing of seeds is almost done. “The government should try to look for quality issues instead of trying to hamper the business in other respects,” he said.

Mulay, who is also the member of the National Seed Association of India (NSAI)– the national level body of seed manufacturers–said they have written to the government in this regard. “We have asked the government to either postpone the circular’s implementation till rabi season or to allow us to the option to insert printed literature or the QR code. Having both really does not make any sense,” he said.

Yuvraj Patil, a farmer from Nanded district of Maharashtra, said the auspicious day of Akshaya Tritiya (April 30) marks the procurement season of seeds for the sector. “Akshaya Tritiya is round the corner. Packing is almost done so any changes at this moment is not possible or desirable,” he said.