Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh-Germany Agri Business Conclave was organized in Lucknow with the aim of increasing agricultural productivity, production and farmers’ income in Uttar Pradesh. In this conference, MoU was signed between German Agribusiness Alliance GAA and UPDASP Uttar Pradesh Government.
Agriculture Minister Surya Pratap Shahi said that the Prime Minister is emphasizing on digital agriculture. The Yogi government is fully committed to protect the interests of farmers. To increase digital agriculture, the Yogi Cabinet has given consent to bring Agritech Policy-2024. He said that the production of food grains is continuously increasing in Uttar Pradesh. The state holds the highest position in milk production and sugarcane cultivation.
Uttar Pradesh ranks third in agricultural exports. 120 mandis have been linked to e-mandi. While promoting digital in agriculture, digital survey of agriculture is being done. Along with this, subsidy amount is being sent directly to the bank accounts of farmers. Apart from this, work is being done to take the agriculture of the state to new dimensions by using Artificial Intelligence. By increasing the capacity of agricultural production in the state and providing quality crops, foreign trade is being made available. He congratulated on the MoU with Germany and said that this MoU will provide foreign trade to the farmers of the state for their produce.
Labor and Employment Minister Anil Rajbhar said that farmers and farming have an important contribution in the Prime Minister’s resolution of self-reliant India, developed India and making India the third economy. The Yogi government is emphasizing on increasing the income of the farmers of the state. He said that farmers should be made aware of the schemes of the state by organizing various workshops and they should be made aware about natural farming.
Minister of State for Horticulture (Independent Charge) Dinesh Pratap Singh said that with the efforts of the Prime Minister and the Chief Minister, work is being done to increase the income of the farmers of the state. Foreign markets are being made available to the produce of the farmers. To transport the produce of farmers to other countries, a rebate of up to Rs 20 lakh is being given on the road expenses. He said that just as the mangoes of the state are special for foreign countries and are on their tongue, similarly, with the arrival of other crops abroad, the farmers of the state will know about the crops and their demand will also increase in the international market.
Minister of State for Agriculture Baldev Singh Aulakh said that the Yogi government is providing subsidy to farmers through several schemes for farming. Focus is being laid on the production of high quality crops by providing improved seeds to farmers.
The Chief Secretary of the state, Manoj Kumar Singh, informed all the participants about the outline of this program and the future strategy. He described this partnership as a new opportunity of possibilities for the farmers and agriculture sector of the state. He said that the technology and investment of Germany, along with the productivity and capacity of Uttar Pradesh, will together supply quality agricultural products in the international market. He wished all the participants.
Additional Chief Secretary Agriculture and In-charge Agriculture Production Commissioner Dr. Devesh Chaturvedi said that the state government has taken many decisions for the interests of farmers. Under which work is being done to send the produce of farmers to the country and abroad. Digital survey of the fields of the farmers of the state is being done, through this survey farmers are being given information about growing weather based crops.
A round table discussion was organized in this Agri Business Conclave, in which permanent solutions and government initiatives for agricultural development in Uttar Pradesh were discussed in detail.
In this discussion, Vinayak Ghatate of World Bank, Ajit Radhakrishnan of WRG-2030, Rajyashri Singh of UPDASP, Director of CIHS T. Damodaran and Maharishi Thakar of Prompt Tools gave presentations on various topics. In addition, representatives from German companies such as Dr. Rajveer Rathi from Bayer Crop Science Ltd., Anil Jadhav from Ecocert India, Sandeep Chaudhary from Claas Agricultural Machinery, Punit Singh from Pesi Instruments, Himanshu Singh from Shaktiman-Greim Root Crop Solutions, and Yuvraj Chopra from BASF India Ltd. also shared their views.
Gerald Guskowski, Programme Director, GIZ India and Dr. Rajiv Ahal, Director, Natural Resource Management and Agro-Ecology highlighted the Indo-German portfolio of agriculture and agroecology. Faiz Ahmad Kidwai, Additional Secretary, Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India and Philip Ackermann, Ambassador of Germany delivered keynote addresses.
The key topics of the sessions included smart agriculture and digital farming, mechanization, sustainable pest and disease management, efficient nutrient management, smart irrigation, post-harvest management, animal husbandry, certification, and training of farmers for export standards.
A mango exhibition was also organized on the occasion in which more than 150 varieties of mangoes were displayed, including the state’s famous Dussehri as well as Langra, Chaunsa, Safeda, and many other varieties. Delegates from Germany also showed keen interest in the exhibition and discussed potential business opportunities.
On this occasion, Ambassador of the Federal Republic of Germany to India, Dr. Philip Ackermann said, “Cooperation between Uttar Pradesh and Germany in the agricultural sector will prove to be extremely important. We look forward to sharing new techniques and technology with the farmers of Uttar Pradesh.” He said, the mangoes of Uttar Pradesh are unique in taste and quality. The mangoes of Uttar Pradesh are famous for their uniqueness and taste not only in India but also globally. I have eaten mangoes in many parts of the world, but no one can match the mangoes of Uttar Pradesh.
