The opium harvest season has come to an end in Lohit and Anjaw districts, as well as other areas. The harvest typically takes place from January to March, with cultivation beginning in September and October. For decades, the government has viewed opium as a major threat, and many educated voices have advocated for its eradication or replacement.
However, as a resident of this region, it has been observed that society becomes extremely serious about the issue only during the harvesting season. The rest of the year remains silent, with no comments, cries, or movements. Perhaps people become busy sowing ginger, pumpkin, and other Kharif cash crops, and forget about the existence of opium. Ironically, this silent period should be the noisiest and most active phase. This is the time when the government should take meaningful measures to support local farmers.
NGOs and CBOs should be advocating alternative cultivation methods, promoting advanced farming practices, and gradually transforming the opium-dependent economy into a healthier agricultural economy. Young minds and unemployed youths should be counselled about job possibilities in the private sector and business opportunities through various initiatives. Raising voices only when seeds are already sown, or when opium fields are fully grown, often leads to mass dissatisfaction, frustration, and confusion among the laymen and farmers.
People become bitter and impatient during destruction drives because such actions directly affect their calculated income, living standards, and speculative savings. The Government, NGOs, and CBOs can use this off-season period to conduct proper research and analysis. They can study the correlation between planned and systematic transformation through training, awareness, and alternative livelihood initiatives versus sudden destruction of opium cultivation without economic rehabilitation and evaluate their long-term impact on farmers and the rural economy. It is believed that the issue needs innovation, reformation, scientific planning, and practical solutions, not just seasonal outrage and attention. Discussions, constructive approaches, and guidance will uplift the lifestyles.
Therefore, for the betterment of the opium-affected and rural agrarian society, the government and civil society must use their brain and wisdom simultaneously.
