Union Minister for Food Processing Industries, Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Narendra Singh Tomar digitally inaugurated Mega Food Park (MFP) at Phagwara in Punjab’s Kapurthala district. He declared that Punjab and Haryana play a crucial role in growth and evolution of agriculture sector of our nation.
He also stated that due to the tireless labour of farmers of these two states, India is not only self-sufficient in terms of food grains but is actually food surplus. He asserted that Punjab has been leading in production of rice and wheat however, due to depleted ground water levels, diversification of crops is necessary for which farmers from Punjab have taken numerous measures. He informed that food processing sector should necessarily be focussed upon such that farmers receive fair prices and associated sectors can also enjoy the benefits.
This MFP has established a project expenditure of Rs 107.83 crore and is extended over 55 acres of land. It is anticipated to be advantageous for about 25,000 farmers and will hopefully create employment for about 5,000 persons. It is furnished with Raw Material/Finished goods Warehouses (3944Sqm), Silos (20000 MT), Cold Storage (3000 MT), IQF & Deep Freezer (IQF: 2 MT/hr plus Deep Freezer: 2000 MT) and some additional linked food processing facilities.
The minister declared that the government is incessantly working for the betterment of farmers under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He further said that MSP (Minimum Supprt Price) of crops has been incremented and the government has begun a venture to institute 10,000 new FPOs. Farmers are being offered subsidy and Government is aimimg on the well-being of small farmers. A 10,000 crore fund has been generated under Aatmanirbhar Bharat, for burgeoning and flourishing of food processing sector which will be beneficial for farmers and for creating job opportunities. Until now, 37 MFPs have been approved and out of which 20 has already become operational.
The minister underscored that research has a major part to play in agriculture sector and ICAR has been doing marvellous research which has been advantageous for the nation. He requested Punjab Government to send proposals associated with research and convinced that Union Government would ponder into those proposals earnestly. He told that Sukhjit Mega Food Park would be proven a quantum leap in the development of food processing sector.
Rameswar Teli, MoS, FPI stated that modern and up-to-date technologies and processing facilities will alleviate wastage of food products and will corroborate that farmers are getting fair prices for their produces.
