Indore (Madhya Pradesh) [India], June 26 : Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Thursday participated in a one-day review meeting and workshop regarding soybean production at ICAR-National Soybean Research Institute, Indore and discussed improving crop quality and benefiting farmers.
Chouhan also drove a tractor and sowed soybean crops. He stressed that he is not only a minister but a farmer too.
"I am not only an Agriculture Minister, but also a farmer and farming is in my every breath. Today I sowed soybeans myself by driving a tractor at ICAR - National Soybean Research Institute, Indore. Here, a serious brainstorming is going on throughout the day with scientists and agricultural experts to increase soybean production and deal with challenges," Chouhan stated in a post on X.
Speaking to reporters, Chouhan said, "Today, the entire team of Agriculture (ministry) is in Indore, including the country's top scientists, farmers, agriculture ministers, people from agricultural science centers, and officials from the central government. We recently launched the Viksit Krishi Sankalp Abhiyan because the experiments conducted in labs should reach the farmers. We took scientists, officials, and farmers to the villages, and today we are here to discuss the soybean crop."
Soybean is an important oil content crop and it has 34 per cent contribution among all the oil content crops. But the production of Soybean is not increasing and some areas observe less production. Viruses are infecting the crop and others damage the crop, resulting in an increase in the cost of farmers in cultivation by using pesticides, Chouhan said.
"We are all here today to hold discussions with farmers in the farm as well as at the ICAR-National Soybean Research Institute. Scientists, farmers, agriculture ministers, people from agricultural science centres, and central government officials will all deliberate, brainstorm, and reflect on how to increase soybean productivity, reduce costs, and produce high-quality soybeans," he added.