India needs multi-pronged approach to agriculture, says Venkaiah Naidu

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu on Wednesday called for a comprehensive, multi-pronged approach to agriculture with focus on crop diversification as well as technology infusion to make the sector viable and sustainable.

He also called for an end to all restrictions on the movement of foodgrains within the country so that farmers get remunerative prices for their produce.

He made these comments while inaugurating the three-day AP AgTech Summit-2017, organised jointly by the Andhra Pradesh government and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, at the APIIC grounds here. "There is a general perception that agriculture is not a good economic proposition. Clearly, a business-as-usual approach will not do and we need a comprehensive, multi- pronged approach," he said.

"We have to innovate and work with farmers to infuse knowledge and technology and thereby enhance productivity," Naidu noted. It has to be ensured that the economic benefits of increased production reach farmers, he said. "The prime minister has set an ambitious target of doubling the farmers' income by 2022. To achieve this, various sources of growth have to be accelerated by 33 per cent. See how gigantic the problem is," he said, reports PTI.

Combining information technology and agriculture technology (IT and AT) will make India mighty, he added. He said: "We have to learn lessons from the past and go for crop diversification, value-addition, food processing and better marketing. We should also keep an eye on the changing food habits." The Indian Council for Agricultural Research and other institutes should come up with new ideas and new seeds, he said, adding that states and the Centre should work together along with agricultural research institutions and Krishi Vigyan Kendra.