Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today stressed linking farmers directly to the market and removing intermediaries with the objective to improve the income of the farmers.
Inaugurating the Odisha Agri conclave 2021 on virtual platform, the Chief Minister said the state government’s emphasis is to enhance the income of the farmers.
”We must respond to the dynamics of the market and streamline their connectivity to the aggregators and processors and remove intermediaries who do not add value to the supply chain, he added.
Stating that the state has a conducive policy environment, the Chief Minister said, ”We aspire to become the investment destination of choice by continuously creating and delivering outstanding opportunities for business growth, fostering all-around socio-economic development for the state and its people.
Patnaik said agri and allied sectors of the state is now open to national and global players.
Stating that Agri Conclave 2021 has been organised to link farmers of Odisha to organised national market, Chief Minister invited top agri-business leaders to be partners in scripting the growth story of agribusiness in Odisha.
The Chief Minister said the development of agriculture and empowerment of farmers is his priority and expressed his happiness over the presence of leading private sector players in the agribusiness sector from across India in the conclave.
Naveen said the state government’s farmer-focused approach backed by various schemes and programmes have started to yield results.
The state, he said can work with agri players to work in tandem so that appropriate pre-harvest and post-harvest rotocols are followed by the farming community, he added.
The Chief Miniser said the farmers of the state should use advanced technology.
Citing challenges of frequent natural calamities including drought, flood, cyclone, he said that his government has worked out all possible measures to ensure uninterrupted growth of agriculture and economy in the state. It is now evident that agri sector is a silver lining in the current Covid-19 pandemic situation, he said.
Describing Odisha’s success, the Chief Minister said Odisha has attained self-sufficiency in food production and is now the third-largest contributor to national public distribution system.
Highlighting Odisha’s advantage in agriculture, he said the state is one of the leading producers of cereals, including millet, vegetable, fruits, spice, fishes, seafood and poultry products.
Some of the key produces that are available for value addition are seafood, cashew nut, organic millet, turmeric, coffee, black pepper, mango, jackfruit, sweet potato, tamarind and honey.
Today, Kandhamal turmeric, Similipal honey, Koraput coffee, have created their own brands across the globe for their exceptional qualities.
The Chief Minister said the state has introduced separate budget for agriculture and have a robust agriculture policy and talked about various schemes launched by the government to augment the overall development of agriculture and agribusiness through integration and value addition.
Agriculture and farmers empowerment Minister Arun Sahu also addressed on the occasion.
UNI
