Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, Feb 1: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced today in a Budget speech that an Agriculture Accelerator Fund will be set up to encourage agri startups, underscoring that inclusive development is the Narendra Modi government’s priority No. 1.
According to the Minister, a digital public infrastructure for agriculture would be created as an open source, open standard, and interoperable public good that will contribute in the development of farmer-centric crop planning solutions.
The Minister announced that the 2024 agriculture loan target has been raised to 20 lakh crore, with a focus on animal husbandry, dairy, and fisheries.
The National Monetization Pipeline, which has a 9 lakh crore investment potential, has also been announced by the government.
According to the Economic Survey, which was released yesterday, agriculture has done well, but the industry needs to ‘re-orient’ in order to address problems like the negative effects of climate change and growing input costs, among others.
The Survey indicates that during the past six years, the agriculture sector has risen at an average annual growth rate of 4.6%. In comparison to the 3.3% growth in 2020–21, it increased by 3% in 2021–22.
India has recently emerged quickly as the world’s largest exporter of agricultural goods. The value of agricultural exports peaked in 2021–2022 at USD 50.2 billion.
According to FM Sitharaman, the government will also promote the millet institute in Hyderabad as a centre of excellence.
