Uttar Pradesh CM Emphasises Need For Research To Increase Millets Productivity

Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Friday said millets (Shri Anna) have held significance since the Vedic era and emphasised need for research to increase its productivity. Inaugurating the state-level Shri Anna Mahotsav, an exhibition and workshop at Indira Gandhi Pratishthan, the chief minister said COVID-19 has taught a lesson that the more we embrace an “artificial lifestyle”, the more susceptible we become to epidemics. The CM said,

We must adopt a natural lifestyle, and Shri Anna will be very helpful in this regard. There is a need for research to increase its productivity.

Also Read: Himachal Pradesh: Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu Releases Booklet On Nutrition

According to a press statement issued by the state government, the chief minister also visited the exhibition organised by millet producers from all over the state. Shri Anna Mahotsav will be organised for three days. He further said,

Three-day Shri Anna Mahotsav is being organised on the occasion of the 34th foundation day of the Uttar Pradesh Agricultural Research Council, which is working for research and development in the field of agriculture. This festival will become a means of comprehensive change in the lives of farmers of UP. Till the sixth and seventh decades of the last century, coarse grains (millets) were produced in large quantities. This was a part of our daily lives. However, due to population growth and a slowdown in research and development, its production decreased.

He also said that while India has made great strides in achieving food self-sufficiency, it has also faced adverse consequences, such as an increase in diseases due to excessive use of chemical fertilisers. During the ceremony, he honoured 35 farmers’ organisations working in the area of ‘Shri Anna’.

Besides this, an assistance of Rs 95 lakh each was provided to five Krishi Vigyan Kendras of the state (Jhansi, Lalitpur, Banda, Hamirpur, and Ghazipur) for millets-processing plants. State Agriculture Minister Surya Pratap Shahi, MSME Minister Rakesh Sachan, Minister of State for Agriculture Baldev Singh Aulakh, UP Agricultural Research Council Chairman Captain Vikas Gupta, Agriculture Production Commissioners Manoj Kumar Singh, Sanjay Aggarwal, Dr. Devesh Chaturvedi, and vice chancellors of agricultural universities were also present on this occasion.

Also Read: Food Safety and Standards Authority of India Launches Eat Right Creativity Challenge For Millets

(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

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