"The agri and food supply chains are vulnerable to massive disruptions which can further impact availability and prices, hence proactive measures for safety and health of farmers and workers are required at both the farm as well as mandi level," said Chandrajit Banerjee, Director General, CII.
While the country is under a lockdown, it is essential that harvesting and post-harvest activities remain functional so that farmers do not suffer and crops are not lost, he added.
The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) said it has developed a comprehensive guidance document on safety measures during post-harvest and mandis operations towards ensuring smooth supply of farm produce days ahead of the rabi harvest.
The CII has recommended that KVKs should be leveraged for effective implementation of the guidelines.
"Clear and prominent instructions should be posted in local languages on masks, hand-washing, social distancing and hygiene. The KVKs and other competent authorities can take the lead in providing training, checking health status and disseminating masks," the statement said.
The association said the current crisis has impacted harvesting operations for the rabi crops (wheat, mustard, pulses, oilseeds, tomato, mango amongst others).
Arrivals and prices in mandis have been impacted, it said.
"While the Government has taken timely decisions to streamline these issues and released necessary advisories, including permitting inputs of agri-input retail, movement of agri-machinery and all farming operations, the key challenges now are being faced in terms of labour availability and timely transportation support," CII said. MJH MKJ