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significant aspect to be addressed on priority .
At 14.2 million tonnes a year , India is no . 1 producer of bananas globally
India holds number one position in the world in the area of banana production and stands at number three in acreages which is 13 per cent of the entire acreage and 33 per cent of the total production . The total production of banana in the country is around 14.2 million tons . Among the states , Maharashtra is the largest producer followed by Tamil Nadu . Productivity of Maharashtra is 65.7 ton / ha , which is more than the average national production of 34.1 ton / ha . Banana is grown in Bihar in around 27.2 thousand hectare , production is around 550 thousand tons and average productivity is 20.0 ton / ha , which is very less than the national average .
Union Agriculture and Farmer ’ s Welfare Minister , Mr Radha Mohan Singh has informed that Bihar and particularly Vaishali district is very suitable for the cultivation of bananas and large scale production of banana can change the fate of farmers .
277 mandis in 12 states linked to e-NAM portal , 585 more by 2018
The Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare , Mr Radha Mohan Singh has said the Government is working on a concrete plan to link the farmers with the markets . Addressing the 5th International Convention on “ Changing Dynamics of Commodities Market ” recently , he said that this will help the farmers ’ participation in the trading of food grains .
Mr Singh said Forward Trading is an index of predictive pricing and as a result both the buyer and seller can plan their futures trading . This will help farmers plan their crop planting and also do away with the role of middlemen .
The Minister said marketing in farm produce is carried out through State Government designated 6,746 Mandis spread across the country . He said the Government is leveraging the APMC Mandis and at the same time amend the Marketing laws to facilitate setting up of Mandis by the private sector .
India looks at scaling up its horticulture potential
The Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare , Mr Radha Mohan Singh has said that there is tremendous potential for development of the horticulture sector and there is need to ensure focused attention for harnessing available potential through scaling up ongoing interventions . Mr Singh stated this recently during the inter-session meeting of the Parliamentary Consultative Committee of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers
78 BioVoiceNews | April 2017