COIMBATORE: Farmers must step out of their fields and get involved in marketing their produce, Vice- President Jagdeep Dhankhar said on Sunday.
Addressing a gathering at Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) on the theme ‘Fostering agri-education, innovation and entrepreneurship for Viksit Bharat,’ Dhankhar said TNAU has made seminal contributions to India’s food security -- from food scarcity to food being in plenty.
“We must move from food security to farmer prosperity. Farmer has to be prosperous, and this must originate from institutions like TNAU. Farmers must step out of their fields and involve themselves in marketing their produce. Being mere producers will not give them financial rewards,” Dhankhar said.
“We need farmer-traders and farmer-entrepreneurs. This will enable a farmer to transform from a producer to a value adder, and they will be able to start an industry based on their primary produce,” the Vice-President said.
Talking about the role of research and technology in agriculture, Dhankhar said, “The gap between lab and land must not merely be bridged, it must be a seamless connection. To achieve this, over 730 Krishi Vigyan Kendras must be vibrant centres of interaction with farmers to educate them.”
Innovation and research initiatives must be evaluated as to what impact they have on the farmer and, research must be supported not only by the central and state governments but also by industry, trade, business and commerce, Dhankhar added.
Governor R N Ravi, Minister for Human Resources Management N Kayalvizhi Selvaraj and university officials were present on the occasion.