Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh) [India], October 15 : The ICAR-Indian Institute of Vegetable Research (IIVR), Varanasi, on Wednesday organised FPO Sangam-2025 under the Agri-Business Incubation (ABI) project, highlighting the transformative potential of vegetable cultivation in driving rural income growth and economic prosperity.
The chief guest of this program, BL Meena, ACS (Horticulture and Food Processing), Government of Uttar Pradesh, said that this seminar will revolutionise vegetable production. He emphasised that the seed replacement rate in agriculture is very low; therefore, replacing old varieties of crops with new varieties is the need of the hour. He informed that 125 centres of excellence have been established under the government's Cluster Development Scheme. Distinguished guest Dr DS Pandey elaborated on the contributions of the National Seeds Corporation, ICAR-IIVR, and FPOs in vegetable seed production.
He informed that large-scale seed production of chilli (Kashi Anmol) is being carried out in Secunderabad. Seed production of pea (Kashi Nandini, Kashi Uday), cowpea (Kashi Kanchan, Kashi Nidhi), okra (Kashi Lalima), spinach (Kashi Barahmasi) and cluster beans (Kashi Khushi) is also being undertaken.
Welcoming the participants, the Director of the Institute, Dr Rajesh Kumar, said that the area under vegetables has increased 4-fold, productivity 3-fold and production 12-fold. Uttar Pradesh ranks first in producing 16 per cent of the country's total vegetable production. The institute has developed 129 varieties of vegetables in 33 different crops. He informed that tomato varieties (Kashi Tapas, Kashi Adbhut) yield well even at 40 degrees Celsius, and Kalmi saag can be cultivated from seeds with minimal water usage, even in May-June. Seed production of brinjal (Kashi Utsav), spinach (Kashi Barahmasi), beans (Kashi Bauni Sem, Pankhiya Sem), carrot (Kashi Krishna) and basmati-scented ridge gourd will be more profitable for FPOs.
Amit Jaiswal, Deputy Director (Agriculture), Varanasi, said that 95 per cent of farmers have holdings of less than 1 per cent; therefore, FPOs need to connect with the Shakti portal and avail CSR funds. Subhash Kumar, District Horticulture Officer, Varanasi, informed that the government provides a subsidy of up to Rs. 24,000 per hectare for the seed production of vegetables and spice crops. Two technical sessions were organised, during which Dr Neeraj Singh, Dr Vikas Singh, Dr PM Singh, Dr Archana Sanyal, and Dr Sudarshan Maurya delivered lectures on seed production, certification, and commercialisation. On this occasion, directors and representatives of 110 FPOs participated and two new FPOs signed agreements with the institute for vegetable seed production. Dr Neeraj Singh conducted the program, and Dr Anant Bahadur proposed a vote of thanks.