The NDA govt is eager to make smallholdings of farmers profitable and this is possible by providing distinct technological option to small farmers so that they can choose as per the resources available to them. Union Agriculture Minister has exhorted scientists to come up with such options.
Radha Mohan Singh said that to achieve that, it is important that agricultural scientists should develop different techniques as per the requirement of different regions and Krishi Vigyan Kendras and advertising network should make them available to the farmers without delay.
Integrated farming system could help achieve this goal. Farmers can yield higher income through horticulture, livestock, agroforestry and other composite farming systems and thus there is a need to give it a push, the Minister felt.
In this context Singh named Indian Institute of Farming Systems Research, Meerut which has developed 38 integrated farming systems for 23 states. In the current financial year, the government has sanctioned Rs 3 crore for the exhibition of integrated farming in 100 KVKs. Each KVK will get Rs. 3 lakh and utilise the fund to train farmers so that they can adopt integrated farming model to increase their income, he added.
In the last two years, though ICAR has achieved a lot but the goal of doubling farmer’s income is yet to be achieved.
The Minister was speaking at a seminar on Agriculture for Prosperity and Sustainable Development organised by VidyarthiKalyanNyas, Bhopal and Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Pusa New Delhi.