New Delhi, 14 July (Hindustan Times). Union Home and Cooperation Minister Amit Shah said on Friday that agriculture, animal husbandry and fisheries are the backbone of the country’s economy. Strengthening them means strengthening the country’s economy. If GDP increases through manufacturing, then the employment figures do not increase that much, but if agriculture, animal husbandry and fisheries are strengthened through cooperatives, then along with GDP, employment opportunities will also increase.
Amit Shah was addressing the inaugural function of the National Seminar-2023 on the subject of FPO in the cooperative sector at Pragati Maidan. He said that about 65 percent of the people in India are associated with agriculture and allied activities, about 55 percent of the workforce is engaged in agriculture and allied activities. Indirectly, on the basis of these 65 percent people and 55 percent workforce, all other services in rural areas are also dependent on agriculture in a way.
Shah said that today 86 percent of the country’s farmers are small and marginal farmers, who have less than one hectare of land. India is the only country in the whole world which has not allowed small farmers to become laborers and they are the owners of their land. In order to modernize agriculture, to get good prices for agricultural produce and to make agriculture profitable, we have to get out of traditional methods and adopt today’s time-appropriate methods.
Many dignitaries including Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, Union Minister of State for Cooperatives BL Verma, Secretary, Ministry of Cooperatives Gyanesh Kumar and Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Manoj Ahuja were present during the programme.
