|
|
|
You can get e-magazine links on WhatsApp. Click here
|
|
|
|
|
|
Centre giving fillip to farm mechanisation through policy interventions
|
|
Saturday, 15 April, 2017, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
|
|
Nandita Vijay, Bengaluru
|
The Centre is encouraging farm mechanisation through different policy interventions, including subsidies for power tillers. A dedicated sub-mission on agricultural mechanisation has been initiated with a focus on spreading farm mechanisation to small and marginal farmers and regions that have low farm power availability.
The objective is to focus on innovation in farm machinery sector to drive the next phase of agricultural growth in the country.
Indian farmers are fast adopting farm mechanisation. The agriculture equipment market is valued at $6.5 billion and has enormous potential for further growth. The tractor, which is core to farm mechanisation, is expected to grow at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8-9 percent over the next five years.
“The joint efforts made by the government and the farm equipment industry have led to such progress in mechanisation over the years,” said Jasmeet Singh, head, agriculture, Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).
“The role offarm mechanisation has now gone beyond tractorisation, with more emphasis on increasing productivity on land and labour and increasing work output per unit time,” said Singh, who was in Bengaluru for the road show of the fifth edition of EIMA AgriMachIndia, which is slated to be held in New Delhi between December7 and 9,2017.
Efficient machinery is being introduced in the country for crops that entail huge manpower requirement, such as cotton and sugarcane, to name a few. This, supported by a favourable policy, testing facilities and infrastructure, can bolster agricultural growth.
This indicates that transformation has begun in the country, and the usage of farm machinery is expected to accelerate over the years, providing customised solutions to different crops, land holdings and varied agro climate.
While the EIMA AgriMach India will showcase the best and latest in farm technology and enable strengthen farmers with the right industry partners,FICCI is working to hold sessions to enable small and marginal farmers to create an awareness of the agriculture mechanisation technology in smaller towns across the country.
In addition, it will also have food processing organisations and agro start-ups to double farm income. It already has identified 177 such companies in Uttar Pradesh and 113 inMadhya Pradesh.
FICCI has also partnered with FEDERUNACOMA of Italy, a country known for its advanced farm equipment, accounting for 65 percent exports to 150 countries.
Rajesh Lingampalli, divisional manager, John Deere, said, “There is a huge business opportunity for farm machinery in India.The government should set up custom hiring centres for farmers to have access to advanced equipment.”
Chipping in with his expertise from an educational perspective was DrNR Gangadharappa, director, research, University of Agricultural Sciences (UAS), Bengaluru, who said, “Agriculture is critical for India’s growth and farm mechanisationis much wanted to offset labour shortage.”
Giving a perspective on the power tiller industry was BCS Iyengar, secretary, Power Tillers’ Association of India, who said, “Karnataka is the largest user of this agri implement. The state government’s subsidy has enabled us to encourage even small and marginal farmers to have access to these power tillers.”
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|