NEW DELHI, 26 November 2016 : In order to shift farmers towards mechanized farming, India has allotted $17 million (Rs 181 crore) for promoting farm mechanization during 2016-17.
Speaking while releasing a coffee table book 'Farm Mechanization for Make in India, agriculture and farmers welfare minister, Radha Mohan Singh said, it is essential to use maximum and best technology available resources in fast changing world and growing world economic competition so that domestic requirement of food grains can be met and export may be promoted.
Agriculture Minister said that farm mechanization has become an important part of crop production, processing and transport but it is facing double challenges in the whole world. The first challenge is to increase the supply of food for growing population and the second is the protection of environment.
During the last year, central government sanctioned $50 MN (Rs 342 crore) in two years - 2014-16 for promoting farm mechanization.
He said that the challenge of farm mechanization still exists in India. Most of our land holding is a small, therefore, commercial use is not proving beneficial but government ensuring the availability of farm machine- rotavator, blow sprayer, cotton cultivator, cutter and shredder through the establishment of custom hiring centre for those farmers who cannot buy costly farm machines.
Four regional farm machinery training and testing institutes have been established in the country which cater to the needs of standard and quality farm machinery and equipments.
Singh informed that farm mechanization sub-mission has been started from 2014-15 for the purpose of promoting farm mechanization in the country by ministry of agriculture and farmers welfare. The aim of the sub-mission is to promote farm mechanization for small and marginal farmers and to promote farm mechanization where there is less availability of farm machines.
The minister further said that the current government released $50 million for this sector in last two years i.e. 2014-16 whereas the previous government released only $ 9.05 million (Rs 62 crore) between 2012-14.
Singh said that food safety, rural employment and soil conservation, sustainable natural resource management and bio-diversity production are essential for sustainable technology and total rural development. Sustainable development of agriculture is required for increase in rural income, doubling the income of farmers and catering to the needs of food and nutrition and farm mechanization plays an important role in it.
He said that Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (Five BRICS countries) along with Japan and Turkey are in the category of the markets of modern farm machines.
