The Indian government has fixed a target of 332 million tonnes (mt) of foodgrain production, including 29.25 mt of pulses, during the 2023-24 crop year (July-June).

Releasing the target at a conference of State officials for the preparation of strategies amid the forecast of El Nino, the Agriculture Ministry said the aim is also to ensure 44 mt of oilseed production and 17 mt of Shri Anna (millets). “The strategy would be to increase area through inter-cropping and crop diversification and productivity enhancement through the introduction of high yielding varieties, and adoption of suitable agronomic practices in low yielding regions,” the ministry said in a statement.

As per the second advance estimate for the current crop year, the production of foodgrains in the country is estimated at 323.5 mt, up 7.9 mt from last crop year. Record production has been estimated for rice, maize, gram, pulses, mustard, oilseeds, and sugarcane.

Robust growth

Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, who inaugurated the conference, said the agriculture sector has been witnessing robust growth, with an average annual growth rate of 4.6 per cent over the last six years. This has enabled the agriculture and allied activities sectors to contribute significantly to the overall economic growth of the country.

The priority of the government is agro-ecological-based crop planning for diversion of land from excess commodities like rice and wheat to deficit commodities like oilseeds and pulses and high-value export-earning crops, the ministry said.

Addressing the conference, Minister of State for Agriculture Kailash Choudhary said global demand for millets is set to rise, consequent to the celebration of the year 2023 as the International Year of Millets (IYM). “This will provide us a unique opportunity to increase production, ensure efficient processing and consumption, promote better utilisation of crop rotations, and encourage better connectivity throughout food systems to promote millets as a key component of the food basket,” Choudhary said.

He said though there has been a significant increase in oilseeds and pulses production in the past few years, more stress should be given to further increase their output. The agri- and allied exports have increased from $41.86 billion in 2020–21 to $50.24 billion in 2021–22, he said.

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