Specialisation, quality, and market differentiation to anchor farmer income growth in the region

Union Minister for Communications and Development of the North Eastern Region (DoNER), Jyotiraditya M. Scindia, on Tuesday underscored the need for a product-first, value chain–integrated strategy to unlock the agricultural and horticultural potential of India’s North Eastern Region (NER), as he participated in a High-Level Task Force (HLTF) meeting convened by Sikkim Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang in New Delhi.

The meeting brought together the Chief Minister of Tripura Prof. (Dr.) Manik Saha, Agriculture Ministers from Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim, senior officials from the Ministry of DoNER, and representatives from NER state governments—signalling a coordinated push to reposition the region’s agri-horti sector from a production-centric model to a market-aligned, income-driven ecosystem.

From commodity output to differentiated value

At the heart of the deliberations was a clear consensus: the North East’s competitive advantage lies not in scale, but in specialisation. Ministers and officials emphasised that quality, traceability, and distinct regional identity must become the defining attributes of NER agri-horti products—whether fresh, processed, or export-oriented.

“The region must move beyond fragmented interventions and focus on building differentiated value chains that stand out in domestic and global markets,” was the underlying thrust of the discussion.

Fixing the weak links in the chain

The HLTF identified systemic bottlenecks across the entire value chain—from production and post-harvest handling to processing, logistics, and marketing—as the primary drag on farmer incomes. High post-harvest losses and elevated logistics costs were flagged as critical pressure points eroding value realisation at the farm gate.

Participants stressed the need for a diagnostic-led approach, mapping gaps commodity by commodity and state by state, and prioritising investments that deliver measurable income gains rather than isolated infrastructure creation.

Cluster-led, end-to-end integration

A strong case was made for cluster-based development, anchored around state-specific priority commodities, to achieve scale, efficiency, and market alignment. The proposed roadmap envisions:

A strategic infrastructure map to support export readiness

Identification of one product at a time for end-to-end intervention

Clearly defined short-, medium-, and long-term plans with product-wise targets

Transparent assessment of investment requirements and farmer participation

Outcome-based evaluation focused on actual income enhancement

This blueprint-driven model aims to ensure that interventions move logically from foundational capacity building to full value chain integration, rather than remaining stuck in pilot-mode execution.

Measuring what matters: farmer income

Crucially, the task force agreed that success must be measured not by spend or asset creation, but by how many farmers benefit—and by how much. Product-wise and state-wise income impact assessments will be integral to evaluating outcomes once interventions are rolled out.

A strategic reset for NER agriculture

The HLTF reaffirmed that a focused, product-specific, and cluster-driven strategy offers the most credible pathway to reducing inefficiencies, strengthening market linkages, and delivering sustainable income growth for farmers across the North Eastern Region.

As India sharpens its agri-export ambitions and seeks resilient, climate-adaptive value chains, the North East—long viewed as peripheral—may now be positioning itself as a high-value, differentiated agri-horti frontier rather than a volume-driven hinterland.