Shardiya Kharif Maha Abhiyan 2026 became a ritual, farmers remained missing, the chair of the training camp was filled with departmental personnel.

The block level training program of Shardiya Kharif Maha Abhiyan 2026, organized with the aim of giving information about modern farming, new agricultural techniques and government schemes to Supaul farmers, once again came under the scanner on Friday. In this workshop organized in the Block Agriculture Office premises, the presence of public representatives and agriculture officers was visible on the stage, but the participation of the farmers for whom the program was organized was very less. The program was inaugurated by local MLA Sonam Rani and block chief Kajal Devi by lighting the lamp.

Addressing the gathering after the inauguration, the MLA said that the government is continuously running schemes to increase the income of farmers and strengthen the agriculture sector. He appealed to the farmers to adopt scientific farming and take benefits of departmental schemes. He also assured of solving the problems of the farmers. But pictures of the venue and claims of local people told a different story. Farmers allege that farmers of most of the panchayats were not even informed about the program.

There was no publicity in the villages nor were the farmers personally invited. The result was that Agriculture Department personnel, agriculture coordinators, farmer advisors and other employees were more visible in the farmer training program than actual farmers. Local farmers alleged that most of the programs of the Agriculture Department have now become a medium for counting departmental achievements and preparing paper reports rather than in the interest of the farmers.

Farmers say that every year programs are organized in the name of training, awareness and mega-campaign, but neither the complete information about the schemes reaches the common farmer nor do they get the actual benefit of the training. One farmer expressed his displeasure and said, “If this was a program for farmers, then where were the farmers? No one in the villages was aware of it. The department organizes programs in the office and gets photographs taken and later in the report, thousands of farmers are shown as benefited.”

In the program, Sub-Divisional Agriculture Officer Mukesh Kumar and Block Agriculture Officer Nitish Kumar gave information about departmental schemes and appealed to the farmers to take advantage of the grant schemes. The officials also gave information on topics like improved seeds, balanced fertilizer use, pest and disease management and water conservation.
However, the biggest question remained that when the presence of farmers was limited, then to whom did the information given by the department reach? If actual farmers are not involved in the training programmes, then how will the government schemes and advice from agricultural scientists reach the fields?

Farmers allege that the Agriculture Department has been counting its achievements for years on the basis of paper data and formal meetings, whereas at the ground level, farmers still keep wandering for timely information about seeds, fertilizers, irrigation facilities and schemes. Many farmers also alleged that only a particular group or select group of people are often invited to the training programmes, thereby affecting the participation of common farmers.

This event of Shardiya Kharif Maha Abhiyan 2026 has once again raised serious questions on the working style of the Agriculture Department. If the department really wants to empower farmers then it will have to move out of the offices and reach the villages. Otherwise, such programs organized in the name of farmers will be limited to only speeches, photo sessions and paper achievements, while the farmers working hard in the fields will be deprived of both information and facilities.