 "Millet")
The Chhattisgarh government is encouraging private enterprenuers to set up millet processing units for the promotion of the coarse grains.
At a high-level review meeting, Chief Secretary Amitabh Jain has asked the forest department officials to explore formulating policy to sway the private entrepreneurs for investing in the sector.
In October 2022, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel had inaugurated the maiden millet processing unit in Kanker district by Avni Ayurveda. The unit, with a capacity of processing 10,000 to 12,000 tonnes of millets annually, is claimed to be the biggest in Asia.
Baghel inaugurated the first millet cafe in the state capital on Wednesday. Besides procuring the crop, such as kodo kutki ragi, at the support price, the government is also providing an input subsidy of Rs 9,000 to farmers.
Millet-based cafes and hotels have opened in many cities of the state, including Raigarh and Jagdalpur, Baghel said, adding that women entrepreneurs were being promoted in the state to run the centres.
At least 20 districts of the state cultivate millets, and the government has fixed the support price Rs 30 per kg for kodo and kutki and Rs 33.77 per kg for ragi.
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The officials said 52,730 quintals of millet grains were purchased under the millet mission in the state in 2022 on the support price. In 2023, however, the volume decreased and the state-run minor forest produce federation procured 38,700 quintal millet from the farmers.
In the academic year 2023-24, the state government has announced plans to provide a midday meal scheme in schools and millet-based nutrition food in anganwadi centers. The millet products will also be supplied in the tribal welfare department's ashrams, schools, hostels, jails, and police lines, the officials said.
