Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar told the UN on Wednesday that the agricultural sector is the key to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030. He said that 12 of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals depend directly on agriculture. In his speech at the United Nations Food System Virtual Summit, Tomar also noted that agriculture plays a crucial role in the socio-economic transformation of developing countries.
It said in a statement that India is committed to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030 and making its agri-food system sustainable. List various measures taken by India to make farming profitable. He said that in addition to the PMKISAN plan, the government has also established an agricultural infrastructure fund with a total amount of 1 lakh crore rupees and the goal is to organize 10,000 farmers to produce through the fund, 1.37 lakh crore rupees have been credited in the bank accounts of 11 crore farmers. He also stated that India is aware of its commitment to climate change and has taken a number of steps to make agriculture sustainable. The Per Drop More Crop scheme for irrigation, he added that Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana organic agriculture and the “Soil Health Card” plan for the protection of water and soil resources are some of the plans implemented in this direction. India also launched Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) to provide insurance protection for farmers’ risks.
The minister thanked the UN for acknowledging India’s proposal to celebrate 2023 as the “International Year of Millet.” Tomar led a 15-member Indian delegation to take part in the 2021 three-day United Nations Food System Summit hosted by the United Nations and the Italian government. Faced with the COVID19 pandemic, the summit was organized in a hybrid mode. United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres, Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, and representatives from various nations also spoke at the three-day summit. In 2015, the United Nations agency adopted the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as the global goals, to take action to eradicate poverty, protect the planet and ensure peace and prosperity for all by 2030. According to the UN agency, a sustainable food system not only helps eradicate hunger, it can also help the world make significant progress on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.
