Kharif Campaign, 2016 to be held at NAAS Complex

NEW DELHI: The Department of Agriculture, Cooperation & Farmers’ Welfare is organizing “The National Conference on Agriculture for Kharif Campaign” on the 11^th & 12^th April, 2016 at the NASC/NAAS Complex, ICAR, New Delhi.  The Conference will be inaugurated by the Union Minister for Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare in the presence of both the Ministers of States for Agriculture, Dr. Sanjeev Balyan and Sh. M.K. Kundariya, Secretary (Department of Agriculture, Cooperation & Farmers’ Welfare), Secretary (Department of Animal Husbandry Dairy & Fisheries) and DG, ICAR & Secretary (Department of Agriculture Research & Education) will also grace the occasion.  The Kharif Campaign, 2016 assumes great importance in view of the recent crop damages on account of moisture stress due to deficit, and uneven and untimely rains, hailstorm and other natural calamities.  The South-West monsoon of the previous Kharif season was very weak leading to a deficit of (-) 14% rainfall in the country.  The Rabi 2015-16 season also had less post monsoon and winter rains and the availability of moisture in the soil is low.  A strategy needs to be evolved for the coming Kharif season in view of the above.

The strategy formulated in the Kharif Campaign, 2016 in the backdrop of the announcement by the Government to double the income of the farmers in the next six years is crucial.  In order to address the issues related to Agriculture & allied sectors in a more comprehensive manner, an integrated approach to farming is required to be adopted. Keeping this in mind, it is for the first time that Secretaries and Senior Officers from the four main domains of the Department of Agriculture, Horticulture, Animal Husbandry and Dairy and Credit, Cooperation & Marketing from all the States and Union Territories have been invited to participate in the Conference, discuss and finalise the strategy for Kharif 2016.  Thirteen (13) Technical Group Discussion Sessions will be organized during the Conference covering these four main domains.  The recommendations of each of these domains will be finalized on the second day of the Conference and presented before the  Union Minister of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare.

Senior officers of various Ministries/Departments like Fertilizer, Water Resources, Land  Resources and all the 3 departments of the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare as also research institutes, NABARD, autonomous bodies like SFAC, NAFED, NHB etc will be participating.

The Conference will go a long way in reviewing the performance of preceeding crop season, formulate a crop production strategy for the coming Kharif season, ensure input supply position and highlight new technologies and innovations in Agriculture & Allied sectors.