Uttar Pradesh Ranks Second in Bajra Production

• 03 Sep 2022

Why in News?

• On September 2, 2022, the Official Spokesperson of Uttar Pradesh informed that Uttar Pradesh stood at the second place in terms of Bajra production in the country. About 50 lakh metric tonnes of bajra is produced in the state, which is 19.69 percent of the total millet production in the country.

Key Points

• It is worth mentioning that the United Nations (UN), acting on India's proposal, has declared 2023 as the International Year of Millets.
• The Uttar Pradesh government is planning to organize several programs to popularize bajra and other nutritious cereals in the state. The Action Plan for the International Millet Year 2023 focuses on strategies to increase production, consumption, exports and branding, among others.
• In the proposed action plan, the government will focus on increasing the cultivation area, production and productivity of bajra. The area under bajra cultivation, which is 9.80 lakh hectare in 2022, will be increased to 10.19 lakh hectare. The productivity will be increased from the present 24.55 quintal per hectare to 25.53 quintal per hectare.
• Similarly, the government aims to increase the area under jowar cultivation to 2.24 lakh hectares from the current 2.15 lakh hectares. Similarly, the area, production and productivity of Kodo and Sanva will also increase.
• To boost the production of millet, the government is planning to organize cluster demonstrations, area expansion through shared seed distribution and free seed minikit distribution.
• Bajra is the best suited for water scarcity and drought conditions. It consumes at least 70 percent less water than other crops and requires minimal inputs and almost no pesticides. For farmers, Bajra/millet is a low-risk crop for climate change. Therefore, the government plans to promote the cultivation of nutritious cereals in rainfed areas.
• In addition, the government is planning to promote coarse cereals under the Public Distribution System. The government will also give complete information about coarse cereals in cropping method based training. The focus will be on development of varieties rich in specific nutrients including protein, zinc, iron and vitamins.
• To create awareness among the people, information will be disseminated through road shows, hoardings, wall paintings etc. Apart from this, National Coarse Grains Day will also be organized at the state, district and block level.
• The Government of Uttar Pradesh will encourage and promote the production of not only millet, but also processed, millet products for the national and global market. Biscuit factory, bread factory and other food processing units will be set up.