Agriculture Minister Addressed a conference on Fruits & Vegetables, Dairy, Poultry & Fisheries – Leveraging the Diverse India Opportunity at World Food India

NEW DELHI : Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Shri Radha Mohan Singh on Saturday said that the unprecedented and multi-faceted development of Indian agriculture post-independence is unparalleled and world is eager to study and adapt our growth strategy.

The Agriculture Minister while addressing a conference on Fruits & Vegetables, Dairy, Poultry & Fisheries – Leveraging the Diverse India Opportunity at World Food India 2017 in New Delhi said that at the time of independence, we were unable to feed 34 crore population, but today, thanks to the hard work and wisdom of our policymakers, farmers, scientists, and food production officers, we have moved ahead among the countries suffering from food shortages and not only providing food to 134 million population but have also become a food exporter.

He Further Stated “with just two percent of the world’s land we are not just feeding 17 percent of the global population, 11.3 percent livestock and vast genetic inheritance, but also exporting food and today we are the world’s largest milk producer, second largest fruits and vegetable producer, third in the production of fish and holds fifth place in egg production.”

“At the time of Independence, per capita of milk supply was 130 gram per day to the 34 million population and today per capita of milk supply has increased to 337-gram milk per day to 134 million people. This is an incomparable achievement in milk production. The Minister further said that we export a lot of agricultural commodities which is about 10 percent of the country’s total exports,” He Added.

The Agriculture Minister said that special emphasis has been given to the overall agricultural growth. The Government has taken various steps to increase the agricultural sector’s growth rate. Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana, e-NAM, Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana, Soil Health Card are some of our key schemes. The Government has allowed 100% FDI in food processing.