‘Viksit Krishi Sankalp Abhiyan’ has been launched at the Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT) campus in Bhubaneswar. Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare and Rural Development Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, Deputy Chief Minister and Agriculture Minister Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo, senior officers of the agriculture departments of the central and state governments and agricultural scientists participated in this event.
Addressing the program, Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Viksit Krishi Sankalp Abhiyan is being organized across the country from today to bring a positive change in the agriculture.
Agricultural scientists, central and state government officials are interacting with farmers at 2,170 places in the country. They have joined this program. Wishing that the country's agriculture sector may prosper with the blessings of Lord Jagannath, the Union Agriculture Minister said, the farmers of the country are not only ‘Annadata’, they are also ‘Jeevandata’.
Steps are being taken to make agriculture a profitable business which will increase farmers’ income. Today, a record amount of food grains is being produced in the country. Be it paddy, wheat or maize or any other kind of food grains.
However, not only this, but under the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India is working towards becoming the food bank of the world. Shri Chouhan said that the country's farmers should be enabled to feed more than 145 crore people of the country and export food grains and vegetables to the rest of the world.
The Union Agriculture Minister further said that steps should be taken to increase the production of farmers and reduce their operating expenses. Therefore, the Central Government is providing an interest subsidy up to 4 percent on agricultural loans through Kisan Credit Cards.
If the share of the state government is added, this subsidy is likely to reach zero percent. Emphasizing on irrigation for the agriculture sector, he said that the Odisha government is preparing a plan for irrigation of 15 lakh hectares of agricultural land which is commendable.
Shri Chouhan said that the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana has been launched to provide compensation for crops affected by climate change. He praised the quality of paddy, mango, organic rice, turmeric etc. of Odisha.
Sri Chouhan urged farmers to join the campaign for the development of agriculture. He also said that a campaign has been started to connect scientists with farmers in laboratories. More than 16,000 agricultural scientists of ICAR alone are ready to interact with farmers.
If we can create a link between scientists and farmers, the agriculture sector can prosper further. Crop production can increase at a faster pace. In this campaign, scientists will visit to every village and advise farmers on agriculture according to the natural and geographical conditions and collect information about their problems and provide solutions to them accordingly.
Speaking on this occasion, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi said that it is a matter of pride that the Viksit Krishi Sankalp Abhiyan has started from Odisha. He wished the success of this campaign.
Similarly, Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan also inaugurated a mango exhibition at the Central Horticulture Experiment Station in Bhubaneswar today.