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Farmers across India demand biotech to boost agricultural productivity
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Friday, 23 August, 2013, 08 : 00 AM [IST]
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Our Bureau, New Delhi
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fiogf49gjkf0d Thousands of farmers from across India gathered at New Delhi's Jantar Mantar for a rally to protest against the recommendations of the Technical Expert Committee (TEC) and demanded that the latest technology be used to boost agricultural productivity in India.
The rally, led by the Consortium of Indian Farmers Association (CIFA), witnessed participation from the Shetkari Sanghatana, the Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) Kisan Club, the Naujawan Kisan Club, the Nagarjuna Rythu Samakhya and the Pratapa Rudra Farmers' Mutually-Aided Cooperative Credit and Marketing Federation, amongst other leading farmer organisations.
Chengal Reddy, secretary general, CIFA, said, “Farmers are confronted with several farm productivity challenges, such as the delay in availability of farm labour, high labour costs, insects, weeds, diseases, unpredictable water and nutrient availability. Biotechnology, or genetically-modified (GM) crops, can offer us several solutions to farmers’ problems. We need biotechnology and the right to choose and freedom to farm. We have full faith that the Supreme Court will do what is right for farmers who are in need of technologies to increase our productivity and personal prosperity.”
The farmer organisations stated that farmers across India believe that the five members of the Technical Expert Committee (TEC) have failed to recognise the significant contribution of technology to Indian agriculture and the economy.
Farmers in other parts of the world now enjoy the benefits of seeds with built-in protection against harmful insects, herbicides and weedicides, enabling farmers to efficiently get rid of weeds while spraying herbicides which retain a healthy crop. They are able to grow crops with less water, use fertilisers and nitrogen more efficiently, which gives them an advantage in times of climate change, erratic weather and scarce irrigation.
Shetkari Sanghatana leader Dinesh Govindrao Sharma said, “Our agricultural production and population of the economy have increased, but the amount of land on which farmers cultivate their crops has not. The amount of water which they receive to nourish these crops has further also not increased. Over the coming decades, climate change will result in more pressure on farmers to get a good yield, with unpredictability in weather playing havoc with India’s agricultural system.”
Agriculture contributes about 13.7 per cent to India’s gross domestic product (GDP) and employs about 51 per cent of the country’s population. Consequently, the majority of India’s poor also reside in the rural areas of the country. To improve the poverty line of economy, they need to increase agricultural productivity and agricultural income. The mode to increase productivity is through the use of technology which will be beneficial for Indian farmers.
P S Pangli, secretary, PAU Kisan Club said, “Technology has benefited the country in many ways, be it information technology, manufacturing or communications. It would be unfair to deny India’s farmers the benefits of biotechnology, and it would be unfair to the nation to prevent its farmlands from prospering more.”
India needs to grow more, to ensure that every citizen can eat a nutritious meal, and every farmer can prosper. Indian agriculture needs to grow to remain competitive in a world economy, and to become an exporter of food to the world.
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