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Time of India
2 days ago
- Science
- Time of India
Shivraj bats for technology transfer to farmers
Varanasi: Chairing a review meeting with scientists of Indian Institute of Vegetable Research (IIVR) here on Friday evening, Union minister of agriculture and farmers welfare and rural development, Shivraj Singh Chauhan emphasised the need for agricultural scientists to advance the developed agriculture resolution campaign and accelerate communication with farmers. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Commending the nationwide success of the campaign, Chauhan stressed the need to enhance food quality, ensure its benefits reach farmers, and intensify awareness on genome editing, seed treatment, organic and natural farming to boost vegetable production. He called for strong measures against counterfeit fertilisers, substandard seeds, and harmful pesticides, which adversely affect farmers. Highlighting the role of the country's 16,000 agricultural scientists, the minister praised the Lab to Land programme, which aligns research efforts with farmers' actual needs. He urged research focused on increasing the shelf life of tomatoes, developing export-friendly crops, and enhancing dry powder yield. He also pushed for data-driven research in organic and traditional farming, emphasizing work aligned with the Developed Agriculture Resolution Campaign. Chauhan noted the need to foster innovation at the grassroots, reduce input costs, ensure fair pricing, and promote natural farming. He also advocated for improved coordination among KVKs, research institutes, and state agriculture departments, and emphasized a region-specific action plan for the upcoming Rabi season, especially in light of climate change challenges. IIVR Director Dr. Rajesh Kumar shared that under the campaign, IIVR scientists have reached over 61,000 farmers across 825 villages in six districts. Sudhakar Pandey, Assistant Director General, ICAR, provided an overview of the institute's ongoing initiatives.
Time of India
2 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
Union minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan reviews IIVR work in UP's Varanasi, urges better farmer outreach, calls for focus on seed quality & natural farming
VARANASI: Union minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare and Rural Development, Shivraj Singh Chouhan , held a review meeting with scientists of the Indian Institute of Vegetable Research (IIVR) at the Circuit House auditorium on Friday. He emphasised the need for agricultural scientists to advance the Developed Agriculture Resolution Campaign and improve communication with farmers. He praised the success of the campaign conducted nationwide and spoke about the continuous rise in food production in the country. He stressed the importance of improving its quality and ensuring the benefits reach farmers. He also highlighted the need to make farmers aware of genome editing, seed treatment, organic farming, and natural farming to boost vegetable production. In addition, he called for a strategy to tackle issues like counterfeit fertilisers, poor-quality seeds, and harmful pesticides affecting farmers. The minister stated that there are 16,000 agricultural scientists in the country working on research and the development of high-quality seeds. He appreciated the Lab to Land programme, saying it enables research to be tailored to farmers' needs. He called for efforts to increase the shelf life of tomatoes, develop crops suitable for dry powder and export, gather scientific data from organic and traditional farming, and accelerate work on gene editing. He also stressed the need for research under the Developed Agriculture Resolution Campaign to be based on farmers' practical requirements. He urged scientists to consider how lessons from the campaign can directly benefit farmers. He also spoke about the importance of increasing production through farmer-led innovations. He said the government is making efforts to increase agricultural output, reduce costs, provide compensation for crop losses, ensure fair prices for produce, and promote natural farming. He stressed the need for better coordination between different departments, Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs), and the state agriculture department. The minister underlined the importance of preparing a region-specific action plan for the upcoming Rabi season and called for greater resilience in the vegetable production system in light of climate change. He emphasised the need for effective collaboration between agricultural science centres and research institutes to speed up the transfer of technology to farmers. Rajesh Kumar , Director of IIVR, presented a detailed report on the institute's achievements and work with farmers. He shared that under the Developed Agriculture Resolution Campaign, IIVR scientists had engaged with 61,109 farmers across 825 villages in six districts. Sudhakar Pandey, Assistant Director General of ICAR, gave a brief overview of the institute's activities. The meeting was attended by a large number of IIVR scientists and officials, as well as state agriculture department officers and KVK representatives.
India Gazette
5 days ago
- Politics
- India Gazette
"Reached more than 60k villages, 1.45 cr farmers": Union Agriculture minister reviews 'Viksit Krishi Sankalp Abhiyan'
New Delhi [India], June 25 (ANI): Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Shivraj Singh Chouhan chaired a high-level meeting to conduct a comprehensive review of 'Viksit Krishi Sankalp Abhiyan' (Developed Agriculture Resolution Campaign), in an effort to understand and solve the problems faced by farmers across the country and increase agricultural production. Under this campaign, over 2,170 teams have travelled across the country, reached more than 60 thousand villages and interacted with over 1.45 crore farmers. The Union Minister said on Tuesday that the goal of the campaign is to increase farming production, reduce costs for farmers and stock up on the country's vegetable and fruit reserves. 'Our 2,170 teams went across the country during the Developed Agriculture Resolution Campaign, reached more than 60,000 villages, and interacted with over 1.45 crore farmers. During the dialogue and discussions, several issues came up, such as research and development should be according to the needs of farmers... what problems farmers face on the ground and what legal solutions can be found for them, this was discussed... The goal is to increase production in farming and reduce costs directly, to increase farmers' income, and to fill the country's fruit and vegetable reserves,' Union Minister Chouhan told reporters here. After chairing the meeting at Indian Agricultural Research Institute (ICAR), New Delhi, the minister said that there have been discussions planned for increasing production and reducing costs of specific crops, with the next discussion to be held on soybean on June 26 (tomorrow). 'We have observed problems in the campaign, assessed our strengths, and will prepare a roadmap by considering the work that needs to be done. Secondly, we have decided that for our different crops, we will discuss the problems related to increasing production, reducing costs, and combating diseases. For example, on the 26th, we are discussing the soybean crop in Indore,' Chouhan said. Additionally, a two-day conference is to be held for the Rabi season, with day one being for officials, and the second day being for the minister to finalise the plan, according to an official statement from the Agriculture ministry. Later on, discussions on cotton, sugarcane, and other crops by creating a roadmap in collaboration with the states. 'Viksit Krishi Sankalp Abhiyan' was conducted by the central government from May 29 to June 12. During the meeting, Chouhan described the campaign as a 'historic movement' in independent India, which is inspired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'Lab to Land' vision, which connected scientists with over 60,000 villages. According to an official statement from the Agriculture ministry, Chouhan emphasised that the initiative would continue with renewed focus on income enhancement, food security, and positioning India as a global food basket. He stressed the development and integration of biofortified crops, sustainable practices, and mechanisation, along with focused efforts on soil health, coastal agriculture, and animal husbandry. The statement read that Chouhan also proposed the initiation of a 'Crop War' for major crops like pulses, oilseeds, soybean, cotton, and sugarcane. He announced plans for crop- and state-specific planning, research prioritisation, strict regulation against substandard inputs, and the formation of special teams to enforce compliance. He highlighted the need to strengthen Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs) through dedicated nodal officers and mandated field engagement by scientists. (ANI)
India Gazette
29-05-2025
- Politics
- India Gazette
Agricultural Sankalp Campaign is important initiative to promote self reliance of farmers: CM Bhupendra Patel
Gandhinagar (Gujarat) [India], May 29 (ANI): Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, in a statewide launch of the Agricultural Sankalp Campaign on Thursday, said that this developed agricultural resolution campaign would be an important initiative to promote self-reliance and indigenous farmers by increasing agricultural production. He said that under the inspiration of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the farmers of the country used the time-consuming technology in agriculture, working in the direction of revolutionary change in agriculture by working in the united efforts of value addition, farm mechanism, natural farming is going to happen. The campaign has been initiated by the Department of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare of the Government of India, in collaboration with scientists of ICAR and agricultural science centers, and agricultural universities. It is being held across the country from May 7 to June 7, according to a release. CM Patel started the campaign in Gujarat with Anand Krishi University. Under this campaign, there has been widespread planning to reach more than 1.5 lakh farmers through 4 clusters of 5 talukas. During this campaign, scientists, agricultural experts, agricultural department officials and local progressive farmers are visiting villages. During this visit, farmers will be given agricultural information about natural agriculture, modern and watercolor transformation, new modified seeds, nano fertilizers, the use of soil health cards as well as the use of fertilizers. In addition, farmers will also be informed about the farmers' benefit assistance schemes of the central and state government. The Department of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare of the State Government has intensified to cover more than three and a half lakh farmers under the campaign, with more than 3,000 farmers from the villages. CM Patel described the campaign as an opportunity for the farmers of the state, adding that the use of nano urea and drone technology can be used in agriculture with the best use of modern technology and science by recognizing the demand for new inventions and science in the field of agriculture. 'If there is a political will of the farmer and agricultural sector and rural life, then what can be changed, PM Modi has proved by providing adequate water and Narmada water for irrigation. He also adopted an approach to the state government by giving the state government to all the understanding of which crops can be taken in their fields, how to get more cost by paying value editions,' the Chief Minister added. The Chief Minister said that agricultural benefits such as Soil Health Card, Lab to Land, Animal Health Fair have met Gujarat with visionary leadership and unique vision of Gujarat, as a result of all this, from 2001 to 2014, when the agricultural growth rate of Gujarat was only 3 percent, The growth rate was growing at double digits. The Chief Minister congratulated the Prime Minister's leadership and the army personnel of the country for the success of Operation Sindoor, saying that as the security of the country is handled with the army, the farmers provide the food security of the country. The Chief Minister also expressed confidence that the farmers of Gujarat will be at the forefront of this developed agricultural resolve campaign for developed India@2047. The Chief Minister also distributed various assistance kits to the farmers on the beginning of the campaign. Dr Manish Das Director of Indian Council Agriculture Research gave detailed information about the ICAR efforts to eliminate the challenges of farmers in the agriculture sector in his occasional address. In addition, he said that this department would provide a new dimension developed by this department to fulfill the vision of the Prime Minister's Lab to Land's vision to the farmers of the state. 'Through this campaign, ICAR of the challenges of farmers in their farming attempts will be made by the scientists to reconcile,' he said confidently. Speaking on the occasion, Vice -Chancellor of Anand Agricultural University, KB Kathria said, 'The developed agricultural resolution campaign is a campaign for mutual education for farmers and scientists.' (ANI)
Time of India
28-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Union min to launch nationwide agri campaign from Puri today
1 2 Bhubaneswar: Union agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan will launch the 'Viksit Krishi Sankalp Abhiyan' from Puri on Thursday, marking the beginning of an ambitious nationwide agricultural development initiative. The 15-day campaign, running from May 29 to June 12, aims to reach around 1.5 crore farmers in more than 700 districts and 65,000 villages. The programme will deploy 2,170 teams to implement Prime Minister Narendra Modi 's 'Lab to Land' vision for agricultural advancement. "This campaign will focus on introducing modern farming technologies, promoting government schemes, and emphasising soil health and natural farming practices," Chouhan announced on a social media post after arriving in Odisha on Wednesday evening. Following the Puri launch, the agriculture minister will embark on a tour covering nearly 20 states, including Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra, as well as Jammu and Kashmir to engage directly with farmers and agricultural scientists. Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and the ministry of agriculture and farmers' welfare will spearhead the campaign in collaboration with state govts. The initiative will utilise the network of 731 Krishi Vigyan Kendras and 113 ICAR institutes, alongside state agriculture departments. Key objectives include education on region-specific kharif crop technologies, promotion of govt agricultural schemes, guidance on soil health card utilisation and collection of farmer feedback for research direction, ICAR sources said. The campaign brings together various stakeholders, including officials from horticulture, animal husbandry and fisheries departments, along with progressive farmers, to advance the goal of agricultural development in line with the vision of a developed India.
