New Delhi, Nov 29 Industry can play a pivotal role in shaping the Indian agriculture sector’s vision of 2047 by prioritising green-fuel-based mechanisation and reducing the drudgery of women farmers by making gender-neutral farm equipment to reduce workload, Dr Devesh Chaturvedi, Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, said on Saturday.
Speaking at the ‘EIMA Agrimach India 2025’ event here, jointly organised by FICCI and Italian agriculture industry body FederUnacoma in association with the Ministry of Agriculture, Chaturvedi said that over the next 5-10 years, “we should shift our technologies towards green fuels -- whether electrically operated tractors or machines running on CBG (compressed biogas) available for rural CBG plants.
“This transition will bring down both maintenance and operational costs for farmers. Our schemes will increasingly prioritize green-fuel-based technologies. I would urge our Italian industry counterparts to collaborate in this area,” he told the gathering.
Terming women farmers vital for achieving the Vision 2047, the Secretary drew the attention of the industry towards gender budgeting and exhorted them to focus on the production of gender-friendly equipment.
He further stated that the United Nations has declared 2026 as the International Year of Women Farmers. Therefore, equipment must be designed to reduce the drudgery of women.
“Often policymakers assume that ‘gender budgeting’ simply means giving ownership of machinery to women, but that alone does not reduce drudgery. Most difficult agricultural tasks are performed by women, and hence we need more gender-friendly equipment, whether manual or motorized, that genuinely reduces their workload,” Chaturvedi emphasised.
Antonio Bartoli, Ambassador of Italy in India, hoped to have an agriculture Attache at the Italian Embassy in the country soon to boost bilateral cooperation in the agriculture field between both countries.
Anbalagan P., Joint Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, said that the participation of a large number of farmers, along with a major presence of both domestic and foreign companies, dealers, and distributors, speaks volumes about the success of the event.
Held at the IARI ground, PUSA in New Delhi from November 27-29, the exhibition witnessed participation of about 20,000 farmers with major draw from Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, and Odisha.
Upbeat over future of India-Italy collaboration in agriculture space, Simona Rapastella, Director General, FEDERUNACOMA said that as per Italian Trade Agency (ICE) report on India, the sector was worth a total of $13.7 billion in 2023 and is expected to grow significantly over the next 10 years, reaching $31.6 billion in 2033, with an annual growth rate of about 9 per cent.
Subroto Geed, Co-Chairman, FICCI National Agriculture Committee and President, South Asia, Corteva Agriscience, said, "For India to secure its food future, improving productivity is critical. We must start by giving farmers access to the right inputs like high-quality seeds and crop solutions.”
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