Shivraj Singh Chouhan Calls For Increasing Productivity, Raising Farmers' Income

Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Tuesday said food security is of paramount importance and called for increasing productivity, reducing the cost of production and ensuring remunerative prices so that farmers earn reasonable profits.

Addressing the Western Zonal Agriculture Conference here, Chouhan said India should not only meet its domestic needs but also contribute to global food requirements.

"Food security is of paramount importance. In the present global situation, dependence on other countries for food is unacceptable. We must become self-reliant. In wheat and rice, we have made significant progress, and our stocks are full. We also need to become self-sufficient in pulses and oilseeds," he said.

He stressed that diversification of agriculture, adoption of new scientific farming techniques and natural farming are needed to raise farmers' income and keep the soil healthy for future generations.

On raising farmers' income, he said serving farmers is like serving God, as agriculture provides livelihood to nearly half the country's population.

The Minister pointed to the challenges posed by climate change, including unseasonal rains and extreme weather events that damage crops. He said diversification of farming, adoption of integrated farming models, hydroponics and other new techniques are important to make farming profitable even on small landholdings.

"We have developed models of integrated farming which go beyond just growing grains. These models will be popularised among farmers so that they can increase their income by taking up multiple activities," he said.

Chouhan voiced concern over declining soil fertility due to excessive use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides and called for the promotion of natural farming to preserve the earth for the coming generations.

He urged states to implement central schemes effectively, assess crop losses due to recent rainfall properly so that farmers get full benefits under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, and take up Farmer ID work on a mission mode.

Referring to the new budget, he said states have been given flexibility to allocate more funds to schemes that are particularly useful for their regions.

The Centre has decided to hold five regional conferences across the country, taking into account diverse climate zones, for detailed discussions on agriculture-related issues. The first conference began in Jaipur on Tuesday.

Rajasthan chief minister Bhajanlal Sharma also addressed the inaugural ceremony.

Agriculture ministers and officers from Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Goa and Maharashtra, progressive farmers, and agriculture experts are participating in the conference.