New Delhi. Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan expressed concern over deteriorating soil fertility which is affecting 30 percent of India’s land. He also stressed the need to take immediate measures to maintain soil quality for sustainable farming. Addressing the global conference on ‘Soil’ online, Chouhan said that improving soil quality is essential to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) related to ending hunger, climate action and life on land.
“We are producing more than 33 crore grains of food grains every year and exporting USD 50 billion worth,” the minister said. However, this success has come with concerns, especially with regard to soil quality…” Chauhan said that the quality of about 30 percent of India’s land is deteriorating due to increasing fertilizer consumption, unbalanced use of fertilizers, exploitation of natural resources and wrong farming. Decreasing due to soil management practices.
He highlighted various government initiatives including distributing more than 22 crore soil quality cards to farmers and promoting micro irrigation, organic and natural farming practices. However, he stressed that more focused efforts are needed, especially in view of rising temperatures, erratic rainfall and climate change challenges. Chauhan said that a new program on modern agriculture will soon be started to bridge the gap between scientists and farmers.
NITI Aayog member Ramesh Chand, who was present at the event, raised questions on the limited adoption of protected agriculture and no-till methods in India and South Asia despite the successful implementation of protected agriculture and no-till methods in South American countries like Brazil and Argentina. Chand told the conference that although some NGOs and private companies are promoting regenerative agriculture and natural farming, the scope of these initiatives is limited. He called on the Indian Society of Soil Scientists (ISSS) to lead the solution on a large scale. ICAR Director General Himanshu Pathak, Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Protection Authority Chairman Trilochan Mahapatra and ISSS Chairman H Pathak were also present in the conference.
