Must improve agri research: VP

Hyderabad: Vice-president M Venkaiah Naidu on Saturday called upon experts to improve the quality and capacity of agricultural research in the country to achieve substantial gains in agri-productivity and increase farmers’ revenue.Speaking at the graduation ceremony of the Agri-Business Management Programme of

ICAR

–

National Academy of Agricultural Research Management

(NAARM) in the city,

Naidu

pointed out that there is also a need to increase the expenditure on research and development. He said that currently, the expenditure on R&D is less than one percent of the entire agricultural GDP. “Apart from pharma and a few other allied sectors, the agriculture sector also saw growth in productivity during the Covid period. We must take our hats off to them and there are several aspects to learn from Indian agriculture,” Naidu said. He also emphasized the need to increase investments in critical areas such as genomics, molecular breeding and nanotechnology among other areas. He also advised students to imbibe Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s slogan of ‘lab to land’ to reap research benefits to farmers to enhance productivity and incomes. Naidu advocated for professionals explore possibilities like mobile-based extension services and offering one-stop solutions for all services. Hyderabad: Vice-president M Venkaiah Naidu on Saturday called upon experts to improve the quality and capacity of agricultural research in the country to achieve substantial gains in agri-productivity and increase farmers’ revenue.Speaking at the graduation ceremony of the Agri-Business Management Programme of ICAR – National Academy of Agricultural Research Management (NAARM) in the city, Naidu pointed out that there is also a need to increase the expenditure on research and development. He said that currently, the expenditure on R&D is less than one percent of the entire agricultural GDP. “Apart from pharma and a few other allied sectors, the agriculture sector also saw growth in productivity during the Covid period. We must take our hats off to them and there are several aspects to learn from Indian agriculture,” Naidu said. He also emphasized the need to increase investments in critical areas such as genomics, molecular breeding and nanotechnology among other areas. He also advised students to imbibe Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s slogan of ‘lab to land’ to reap research benefits to farmers to enhance productivity and incomes. Naidu advocated for professionals explore possibilities like mobile-based extension services and offering one-stop solutions for all services.