Seven New 18 Meters High Potato Cold Storage Facilities in North Bengal
To meet the recent surge in potato production in North Bengal, the state government plans to build seven more cold storage facilities. The Agricultural Marketing department has received approval from the Fire and Emergency Services department to build godowns (storage facilities) with increased height (18 meters).
“The number of storage facilities in North Bengal is inadequate considering the steep rise in potato cultivation there. The entrepreneurs have reasoned that construction of godowns up to 18 meters in height will be beneficial for the farmers as they will be able to store more and entrepreneurs will be able to earn more as rent from the farmers. We took up the matter with the state Fire and Emergency Services department and recently got the nod for increasing the height of the godowns. We are hopeful that during the lifting of new potatoes in January- February next year, the facilities of these upcoming cold storages will be enjoyed,” Becharam Manna, state Agricultural Marketing minister, said, cited by Millenium Post.
According to a new, local, modified construction act, the height of a go-down for storage should not exceed 15 metres. The existing godowns’ height cannot be increased. The Agricultural Marketing Department and the Fire and Emergency Services Department raised the issue at the chief secretary level, and approval for go-downs with increased storage was granted.
“Potatoes from North Bengal are also exported to the north eastern states like Assam, Meghalaya and Manipur. The additional storage will also facilitate export,” an Agricultural Marketing department official declared for the above mentioned media source.
Last year, due to a lack of storage facilities, farmers in North Bengal were forced to sell potatoes at a low price. Potato producers have used roadblocks to demand fair and equitable prices for their produce.
“We hope with the new storage facilities such problems will be addressed to a reasonable extent,” the official added.
There are 472 potato storage godowns in the state, with more than 410 of them operational.
