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New Delhi [India], April 18 (ANI): One of India’s core strengths is its strong agricultural sector, which enables the country to be self-sufficient in meeting its food security needs. India currently has the capacity to produce enough food for 18% of the world’s population, using only 12% of the world’s land resources and only 4% of global water resources.
Farmers in India have been making good use of India’s 20 agroclimatic zones, 15 major climates and all 46 soil types that our 1.4 billion people call home. Progress, investment and government support have empowered India’s Kissan and its agricultural sector.
This year, the 2023-24 budget allocates more than $15 billion to agriculture and related sectors, including $900 million earmarked for farmer education.
Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said, “Even from an agricultural point of view, there have been several major announcements. This time over Rs 101,500 crore (approx. Rs. (approximately 1.1 billion has been allocated) for agricultural education. A total of Rs. 102,500 crore (US$15 billion) has been allocated for agriculture, which of course is substantial”.
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Thanks to these government efforts, the agricultural sector has emerged victorious, with growth of 3.6% in 2020-21 and 3.9% in 2021-22 despite the Covid-induced shockwaves. The agricultural sector, which currently employs 56.4% of India’s population, is expected to grow exponentially across the country’s eight agricultural clusters; Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra States, Punjab, Rajasthan and Assam. (Source – IBEF)
Over time, multiple government efforts in agriculture have made India the world leader in the production of spices, pulses, milk, tea, cashew nuts and jute and the second largest producer of wheat, rice, fruits and vegetables, sugar cane, cotton Large producer, and oilseeds. It is predicted that by 2025, India’s agricultural output will grow to $24 billion. (Source IBEF)
Not limited to focused investments, the government has also addressed the need to modernize and renovate India’s agricultural sector. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in her budget speech: “Agricultural digital commons infrastructure will be built as open source, open standards and interoperable public goods. This will enable inclusive solutions centered on farmers. An Agriculture Accelerator Fund to encourage agricultural start-ups by young entrepreneurs in rural areas. The fund aims to provide innovative and affordable solutions to the challenges faced by farmers. We will start the Atmanirbhar Clean Plants Program to increase disease-free quality planting materials availability for high-value horticultural crops”.
Outside the halls of parliament, India’s private sector has also stepped up its support for the development of India’s agricultural industry.
In September 2021, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare signed five MoUs with Cisco, Nestlé, Ninjacart, Jio Platforms Limited, ITC Limited and NCDEX e-markets Limited. These MoUs will have five pilot projects to help farmers maximize crop yields, establishing India’s agricultural strength globally. (Source IBEF)
India’s conducive environment for entrepreneurship has also extended to India’s fields and farms. No longer confined to commercial hubs, capable youth of our country are setting up agricultural start-ups across India.
Saurabh Agarwal, CEO of GROWiT India, a Surat-based agriculture start-up, explained the potential of the agricultural sector to ANI, saying that “the potential of the sector is close to five trillion rupiah ($6.08 billion) for this particular sector.” ) business. Today, the industry is only about one billion billion (121 million). This is a huge industry potential, many people can enter the industry, and the more people come in, the more knowledge farmers will have. The industry will There is some competition for better development and some good young companies coming in and taking the technology further.”
Amit Sinha, co-founder of New Delhi-based Unnati Agri and Agriculture Startups, said, “There is a huge scope for building India-first solutions in Indian agriculture and this is an area where many startups, including us, have been working hard together to pass the We can provide the latest technology and financial services to solve agricultural problems”.
Several modernizations have resulted in the introduction of artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML) into the agricultural sector and the establishment of government and private platforms to support and create an ecosystem conducive to the sale of agricultural products.
India is no longer the land of uneducated farmers. The revolution in the agricultural sector has resulted in some mature and well-educated young entrepreneurs turning to the farmland, launching more than 1,300 agricultural startups.
Ezhil Subbian, chief executive of String Bio, an agriculture start-up from Bengaluru, said: “We have a lot of MSC graduates working for us who come from an agricultural background. So their parents used to be traditional farmers and now they have become agronomists by training. Farmers are keen to bring advanced farm management practices to their own farms. I think this is a very positive trend and I hope to see more of this in the years to come.”
Agriculture-based startups aim to ensure that science and cutting-edge technology can cover and utilize the entire soil of India from east to west and north to south.
While women have long been an integral part of Indian agriculture, female entrepreneurs have entered this rapidly revolutionizing market, offering it a radically different approach and a different perspective.
Rapid modernization, targeted investments, government support and the entry of talented young people into the Indian agricultural sector will have a compounding effect and will ensure another aspect of Brand India has a bright future. (Arnie)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the body of content may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
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