Chouhan inaugurates agri-business meet

Bhopal, May 25 (UNI) Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan today said efforts would be made to attract private investment in agriculture besides ensuring market for agriculture produce.

Mr Chouhan, while inaugurating two-day agri-business meet that began in the Vidhan Sabha campus here today, said all possible assistance would be extended to establish food processing units in order to ensure better prices for the agriculture produce.

Several CEOs belonging to 65 renowned business houses of the country, farmers and representatives of the organisations related to agriculture are taking part in the meeting, an official release said here today.

''No hurdle will come in the way of establishing industries in the state. Besides, action would be initiated to establish Madhya Pradesh's own sea port in Gujarat to facilitate export of agriculture produces,'' he said.

Informing that activities were being undertaken for applying new techniques to set up hybrid agriculture zone in the state, he said major business houses would be encouraged for food processing activities.

The Chief Minister said the presence of commission agents from the field of agriculture produces would be eliminated.

Besides, increasing the production of seeds to ensure its availability, tissue-culture farming would be encouraged.

Promising that no land would be acquired from peasants at meager amount under any circumstance, he said measures were being undertaken for uplifting socio-economic condition of the farmers.

Steps had been taken to make agriculture a profitable occupation.

Interest rate on agricultural loans had been lowered to seven per cent from 14 per cent in this view. Besides, measures had been taken to provide adequate compensation to farmers in case of damage to crops due to natural calamities.

He added that special efforts would be made to facilitate early clearance of project costing upto Rs 25 crore.

He said single-table system had been introduced replacing the single-window system to ensure all facilities for entrepreneurs for establishing industries.

Minister for Agriculture Chowdhary Chandrabhan Singh said the agri-business meet has paved the way for the socio-economic development of farmers, the release added.

UNI