Bhopal: Chief Minister Kamal Nath has urged the Centre to take a policy decision regarding genetically modified seeds so that India does not lag behind in adopting the technology that is a game changer. Omitting this may prove disadvantageous for India and the farming community. In the interest of farmers, he also advocated reforms in the Essential Commodities Act which, he said would help in dealing with critical situations.
The Chief Minister made these observations while addressing a meeting of High Powered Committee of Chief Ministers of NITI Ayog on Overhauling of India’s Farm Sector organized at Mumbai today. It is noteworthy that NITI Aayog has constituted a High Powered Committee of Chief Ministers for the purpose of rejuvenating Indian agriculture scenario.
Chief Minister Kalam Nath is member of the Committee. The Chief Minister said that agriculture is not only economic but also social problem. He said that there has been a change in the approach of farmers. There is a difference between the attitude of farmers wearing a conventional dhoti and a farmer wearing jeans. The Chief Minister said that farmers of India cannot compete with the treasuries of USA and European Union. He said that agricultural imports are not in the interest of farmers that are bound to be there owing to the agreements of the World Trade Organization. He clusters of organic food should be identified and be marketed in the interest of farmers.
Nath suggested that the areas having potential for food processing units need to be identified and given full support. The Chief Minister said that farmers should have freedom to select the brand of agricultural inputs by assessing prices. He said that there should be a synthesis of farmers, farmers’ organizations, trading societies and markets. He said that the procurement model also needs to be reformed.
Emphasizing on increasing the use of mechanization in farming, the Chief Minister said that the use of modern technology like GIS / GPS in agriculture sector will benefit the farmers immensely. The Chief Minister informed about the reforms done in the agriculture sector in Madhya Pradesh. He informed that the license and operational requirements of the farmers’ product organizations have been relaxed so that they get better prices. Single license and purchase outside the mandis are also allowed. The work of setting up an electronic platform for the auction is underway.