The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee inaugurated the 12the dition of CII Agro Tech 2016 in Chandigarh today (November 20, 2016).
Speaking on the occasion, the President said the nation stood at the cusp of a second green revolution in the Eastern and North Eastern parts of the country.He stated that he was happy to be present in the heart of Punjab and Haryana, the area where the first green revolution successfully began in the 1960s and continued in the decades that followed. He appreciated the indomitable spirit of the farmers of these states for having achieved the green revolution and exhorted industry, research institutions, scientists and farmers to come together for bringing about a second green revolution.
The President stated that India had made significant progress from producing just 50 million tones of food grain in 1947 to about 270 million tones now. He called for the adoption of innovations and technology in agriculture so as to make our farms more productive and use resources more effectively. The President complimented Israel, whose President, Mr.Reuven Rivlin was present on the occasion, for having successfully achieved greater productivity per drop of water by applying innovative technology to agriculture.
The President said for several years India's economic growth rate had been substantial, with an average percentage of 7.6 being achieved in the last one and a half decade, despite a global slowdown. India had emerged as one of the major economies and he was confident that with the new and innovative programs of the Government like, ‘Clean India’, ‘Digital India’, ‘Make in India’ etc, this ancient civilization of ours will soon grow to be a modern and prosperous world power.
Highlighting the growing relations between India and Israel, the President said that he was a part of the decision making process when fully fledged diplomatic relation were established between the two countries. He said it was a matter of satisfaction that the two countries were collaborating on several fronts that ranged from defense to agriculture.
Among other dignitaries present on the occasion were Shri VP Singh Badnore, Governor of Punjab,Prof. Kaptan Singh Solanki, Governor of Haryana and Shri Radha Mohan Singh, Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
This release issued at 1640 hrs.