The Business Bytes
TBB BUREAU
BHUBANESWAR, OCT 8, 2021
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Friday stressed upon linking farmers directly to market and removing intermediaries with the objective to improve the income of farmers.
Inaugurating the Odisha Agri Conclave 2021 on virtual platform today, the Chief Minister said that the emphasis of the state government is to enhance the income of farmers. So, we must respond to the dynamics of the market. We need to streamline their connectivity to the aggregators and processors to play the role as producers. We need to remove intermediaries who don’t add value to the supply chain, he added.
Stating that the State has a conducive policy environment, Patnaik said, “We aspire to become the investment destination of choice by continuously creating and delivering outstanding opportunities for business growth, fostering all round socio-economic development for the state and its people.” Agri & allied sectors of the state are now open to national and global players, he added.
The Chief Minister further said that the Agri Conclave 2021 has been organized to link farmers of Odisha to organised national market. He urged the top agri-business leaders to be partners in scripting the growth story of Agribusiness in Odisha.
Stating that development of agriculture and empowerment of farmers is his priority, Patnaik further said, “Farmers lay the foundation of nation’s economy. It is on this foundation, we build the pillars of a vibrant economy.”
“Our farmer-focused approach backed by various schemes and programmes have started to yield results. There are considerable evidence of local surplus of agriculture and horticulture produce. We can work with agri players to work in tandem so that appropriate pre-harvest and post-harvest protocols are followed by the farming community,” he added.
The Chief Minister stressed that the farmers of the state should use advanced technology.
Citing challenges of frequent natural calamities including droughts, cyclones and floods, he said that his Government has worked out all possible measures to ensure un-interrupted growth of Agriculture and Economy of the state. It is now evident that Agri-sector is a silver lining in the current Covid-19 pandemic situation, he added.
Describing Odisha’s success, Patnaik said that the State has attained self-sufficiency in food production, and it is now the third largest contributor to the nation’s Public Distribution System.
Highlighting Odisha’s advantage in agriculture, he said that we are one of the leading producers of cereals including millets, vegetables, fruits, spices, fishes, seafood and poultry products. Some of the key produces that are available for value addition are Seafood, Cashew-nut, Organic millets, Turmeric, Coffee, Black pepper, Mango, Jackfruit, Sweet Potato, Tamarind, Honey etc. Today, Kandhamal Turmeric, Similipal Honey, Koraput Coffee have created their own brand values across the globe for their exceptional qualities, he added.
Speaking on state’s policy framework for various sectors, he said that Odisha has introduced separate Agriculture budget for the state and has a robust State Agriculture Policy.
“We have Odisha Industrial Policy, MSME Development Policy, Food Processing Policy, Start-Up Policy, Agriculture Entrepreneurship Promotion Scheme, Farmer Producer Organisations Policy, Organic Farming Policy, Mukhyamantri Krushi Udyog Yojana and Odisha Millet Mission to augment overall development of Agriculture and Agribusiness through integration and value addition, he added.
Speaking on the occasion, Minister for Agriculture & Farmers’ Empowerment Arun Sahoo said that Odisha is a pioneer in promoting agriculture enterprises through ease of doing business. Mukhya Mantri Krushi Udyog Yojana has been a great support to farm sector business, he added. He outlined the advantages of schemes like KALIA and Balaram Yojana for the farmers. He praised the vision of the Chief Minister for income growth of farmers in the state.
Odisha Agri Conclave 2021 is a joint endeavour of State Agriculture & Farmers’ Empowerment Department and National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India to make the process of farming easier for farmers. The initiative has helped in providing State’s traditional, indigenous and nutritious products support to get prominence in global market.
The Chief Minister released two books on agriculture on the occasion.
Adani-Wilmer Ltd, Tata Agri, Parley, Amul, Coffee Board of India, Big Basket and many other top national and global players participated in the conclave.
