GANGTOK,: The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development
Authority (APEDA), the nodal agency for National Programme on Organic
Production (NPOP) has suspended Sikkim State Organic Certification Agency
(SSOCA) for a period of one year following some traces of abnormalities in the
certification process without any penalty.
It is learnt
that the SSOCA has been operational on the State since 2016 and its operation
is not just limited to Sikkim alone. The agency has been operational in others
States of the nation and as of date the agencies has about 1600 projects under
its arm that too transferred projects including States projects which earlier
were under different agencies.
The suspension
imposed by APEDA with effect from October 1 remains. However, the SSOCA as per
the provisions of NPOP can file an appeal to the nodal agency with required and
sufficient evidence requesting for early revoking of the suspension so that the
agency can deliver their services to the operators nationwide without hampering
the farmers produce and market.
