 "Gujarat govt to organise mega-farmers summit to discuss common problems")
The two-day summit which will begin from September 9 is expected to discuss a range of issues and share success stories between farmers from across the country.
Teams of senior officers from the Gujarat government visited as many as 18 states to encourage farmers and government to participate in the summit. "Almost all of them barring Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal have not yet confirmed their participation while other have done," said Gujarat, principle secretary for agriculture and cooperation Raj Kumar.
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He said the summit main theme will be bring India's agriculture growth at par with growth in other sector. In the 8th, 9th, 10th and 11th five-year plan India average agriculture growth has been 4.8 per cent, 2.5 per cent, 2.4 per cent and 3.5 per cent, while the overall GDP growth has been much more than that.
"There is definitely something wrong in our agricultural policies which this summit will try to find some answer," Kumar said. He said that in Gujarat the average agriculture growth in the last one decade has been around 11 per cent, much more than the national average.
"The farmers of Gujarat will share their experiences with farmers from other countries and vice-versa," Kumar said. He said the summit should not be seen in narrow prism of one-upmanship, but as a platform where all the farmers from different states will discuss and deliberate their problems and come to their own solution.
"Instead of framing policies we believe this is the best way to find solution to the myriad problems facing the country's farming community," Kumar said. He said at the end of the two-day summit a farmers panchayat will be held which will deliberate on various issues. Representatives from 200 companies of which 30 foreign companies will also participate in the summit.