New Delhi: To rapidly advance the agricultural sector in the country, Minister of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare and Rural Development, Government of India, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, has initiated state-wise discussions. The agriculture minister, on Monday, met with a high-level delegation including Assam Agriculture Minister, Atul Bora, at Krishi Bhavan in New Delhi. The discussion covered various topics related to agriculture and farmers’ welfare in Assam, including promoting soil health, the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), increasing storage capacity, and enhancing horticulture. Chouhan emphasised that the interests of farmers and the agriculture sector are paramount. He assured that the Central government would fully support Assam in organising capacity-building workshops and training. The agriculture minister said that there are enough opportunities to promote natural farming in Assam.
The minister discussed with Bora the various schemes and programmes of the agriculture ministry, highlighting the need to develop infrastructure such as dry storage, cold storage, and processing units under the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF) in conjunction with schemes like the Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH), the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY), and the Pradhan Mantri Formalisation of Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PMFME) of the Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI). These efforts aim to enhance post-harvest management capacity and minimise post-harvest losses in the state.
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Chouhan assured that the farmers of Assam would not face any problems at the Central level and that the Central and state governments would continue to work together. He reiterated the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare’s full support for Assam’s development and highlighted the Central government’s policy to promote natural farming, noting the significant opportunities to advance natural farming in Assam.
Sanjeev Chopra, Secretary, Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, along with senior officials from the Central and state agriculture and horticulture departments, were also present at the meeting.
