Horticulture Cluster Development Programme To Help Farmers, Says Agriculture Minister

While emphasising the interest of farmers, Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Wednesday said that the horticulture cluster development programme will benefit them.

The Union Agriculture Ministry has prepared the horticulture cluster development programme (CDP) for which a meeting was held for its proper implementation. 

In the meeting, Tomar told the concerned officials that the main objective of the government is to promote the agriculture sector in the country. 

He asked them to increase the income of the farmers by giving them a reasonable price for their produce, so the interest of the farmers should be paramount at the centre of any programme and scheme.

Tomar said that the overall development of horticulture in the country would be focused on with the help of the implementation of the cluster development programme and it would be emphasised that the farmers should be benefited from this programme. 

He said that the states of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, West Bengal, Manipur, Mizoram, Jharkhand, Uttarakhand etc. should also be included in the list of 55 clusters, identified with their focus/main crops. 

Tomar said that the land available with Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) affiliated institutions within the identified clusters should be utilised for the implementation of this programme. 

He also emphasised on crop diversification and linking this ambitious programme with the market for produce sale and capacity building.