Results Essential in Agriculture; Meetings Alone Are Not Enough: Shivraj Singh Chouhan
Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan instructed southern states to complete goals such as Farmer IDs and AgriStack within the stipulated deadlines during a regional conference in Hyderabad.
Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan, addressed the closing session of the regional agriculture conference for southern states held in Hyderabad. During the session, he directed the states to complete the targets and commitments set for the agriculture sector within the specified timeframes. He emphasized that the 'actionable points' discussed during the conference must be worked upon seriously, otherwise, the entire exercise would be futile.
The Union Minister stated that the Center and states together form an 'Agriculture Team,' which includes scientists, farmers, and government officials. He clarified that simply holding meetings would not suffice; rather, it is essential to deliver results on the ground. He asserted that if any state has promised to complete the Farmer ID work by December, it must be accomplished at all costs.
Discussing Farmer IDs and digital progress, Shri Chouhan noted that the creation of Farmer IDs in Telangana and Karnataka is more than 75 percent complete. Additionally, Andaman and Nicobar, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, and Kerala have achieved completeness in digital crop surveys. However, he indicated that Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands need to put in more effort regarding the Farmer ID creation process.
Regarding land records and farmer registries, he urged Tamil Nadu and Kerala to expedite the work of linking land parcels. He instructed Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to create and notify Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for tenant farmers, while Puducherry and Lakshadweep are required to complete the geo-referencing of village maps.
To facilitate farmers, the Union Minister shared information about the 'Bharat Vistar' system. Currently available in Hindi and English, this service will now be launched in 13 regional languages, including Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Malayalam, allowing farmers to receive advice in their own languages. Furthermore, he urged states to take scientists to the farmers to ensure research reaches from the lab to the land.
With the goal of making India the 'food basket' and a leader in the global agricultural sector, Shri Chouhan announced the upcoming Rabi Conference. He stated that the Rabi Conference will take place on September 28 and 29 at the Pusa Institute in Delhi, where agriculture ministers and officials from all states will present crop-wise plans. Based on these plans, the availability of seeds, fertilizers, and other resources will be assessed.
It is noteworthy that agriculture ministers and representatives from large states such as Karnataka and Tamil Nadu did not attend this regional agriculture conference.
