World Agriculture Congress in city next year

HYDERABAD: The state government will host the World Agriculture Congress in Hyderabad next year.

According to agriculture minister Kanna Lakshminarayana, the World Agriculture Forum has agreed to conduct the event in Andhra Pradesh. The event, to be held in India for the first time, is likely to be held in November next year. Over 500 delegates and experts from India and abroad will attend it.

Forum chairman Kenneth M.Baker and member Evie met chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy at the Secretariat here on Wednesday and discussed the arrangements for the WAC-2013. Thanking the forum chairman for selecting Hyderabad as the venue for the international conference, the chief minister told him that 65 to 70 percent people in the state were dependent on agriculture and allied sectors. Reddy assured Baker that the government would extend all possible support to the organisers in conducting the event successfully. A cabinet sub-committee would be constituted to look after the arrangements, he said.

Later, holding a meeting with state government officials, the chief minister asked them to work out details to conduct the event without problems. President Pratibha Patil or prime minister Manmohan Singh   could be invited to the inaugural of the World Agriculture Congress-2013, he said.

The minister said the agriculture congress would be useful to small and marginal farmers and would provide tips on reaping maximum yield with least investment. Scientists and other experts from agriculturally-developed countries will give suggestions and advice  to farmers on making cultivation profitable.

Lakshminarayana said former chief minister YS Rajasekhara Reddy had assured to conduct the World Agriculture Congress in the state last year but it was conducted in Belgium due to some reasons. Now, the World Agriculture Forum has agreed to conduct next biennial congress in the state. The event is organised every two years and next year’s will be the third congress.

Minister for cooperation Kasu Venkata Krishna Reddy, chief secretary Pankaj Dwivedi, principal secretaries V Nagi Reddy and IVR Krishna Rao, agriculture commissioner V Usha Rani and other officials attended the meeting.