Sharad Pawar outlines visions for NE states

Gangtok

29 Nov 2013

Union Agriculture and Food Processing minister Sharad Pawar, who is presently in Sikkim, today attended the inaugural session of the North Eastern States Conference of Animal Husbandry, Dairy and Fisheries Ministers.

Outlining his vision for the NE states, Pawar said the region needs to develop the livestock and fisheries sector to ensure better nutrition for its residents. He said this should be done through a multipronged strategy for increased yields, output through scientific breeding, nutrition market development, accelerated development of post harvest processing and value addition, among others.

The minister said, “The fishery sector has made a significant contribution in the overall socio-economic development of the country,” adding the North East region is blessed with rich biodiversity and fishery resources. “As more than 90 per cent of the population eats fish, there is an urgent need to expand fisheries through enhancement of productivity of existing water bodies and by promoting intensive aquaculture, reservoir fisheries and diversification of species in the region,” said Pawar further.

He added the 12th Plan aims to address the major challenges faced by the country’s fishery sector.

Pawar further said the North Eastern states can suggest innovative initiatives for the development of the livestock sector. Although efforts have been made, the average productivity of dairy animals in the region is still below par compared to other parts of the country. The minister said the Centre will supplement the efforts of the NE state governments with quality inputs through various central government schemes in the 12th Plan - namely the National Programme of Bovine Breeding and Dairying (NPBBD), Dairy Entrepreneurship Development Scheme and the World Bank-aided National Dairy Plan.

Meanwhile, chief minister Pawan Chamling said the animal husbandry, dairy and fisheries sectors of Sikkim are being developed on priority basis to uplift the living standards of rural area people engaged in livestock rearing and processing of animal products. He added the state government has been using these sectors as a tool for the socio-economic development of the rural population.

Chamling further said the state government has worked on genetic enhancement of indigenous livestock through breeding, induction of high yielding breeds and introduction of better genetic pools in order to increase production. “We are self sufficient in broiler chicken and milk production. The state government is grateful to the Centre for enabling us to achieve this target,” said the CM. He added intensive capacity building programmes are also being undertaken to make livelihood options more viable and sustainable.