Budget 2023 must support Agrochemical sector by introducing PLIs: Rajesh Aggarwal, Insecticides India Limited
20 January 2023, New Delhi: Agriculture and its allied sectors are the largest sources of livelihood in the country. The sector employs almost half of India’s population, accounting for about 16% of the country’s GDP. It is important to note that the crop protection industry has a vital role to play to take Indian agriculture to new heights. The significance of crop protection & nutrition has been rising over the last few decades, pushed by the requirement to increase overall agricultural production and the need to safeguard adequate food availability for the continuously growing population in India.
Mr. Rajesh Aggarwal, Managing Director, Insecticides India Limited said, “Indian Companies have also geared themself for the new technology with their R&D initiatives and awareness campaigns in the last few years. There have been a few new interventions like Drone technology, where the government has acted fast and taken it to the next level though it is still in the nascent stage. It is expected to help farmers optimize the use of insecticides and increase their efficacy as well.
He further mentioned, “The upcoming budget should look forward to allocating funds on research and development activities to develop new more effective and safer solutions for control of pests, diseases, and weeds for chemical and as well as biological streams. Different forms of incentive to the companies engaged in such R&D activities can be a motivating factor for them to invest more in the same.”
Mr. Aggarwal emphasized, “The government should also make budgetary allocations and develop more aggressive awareness missions for the new technology and new crop avenues so that input cost can be reduced and output value can be maximized. The budget needs to take this into account and provide higher allocation to horticulture.”
Government subsidies and initiatives are required for safe farming, enhanced focus on sustainable development, and expanding crop supplier and manufacturing base network. To facilitate the growth of agri-exports, the government should speed up and ease the documentation process for registrations, incentivize global collaborations, and educate stakeholders.
“The industry needs more support from the government to maximize the agricultural output in 2023 in the forms of incentives like PLIs. The agrochemicals sector should see positive momentum coupled with banking as credit penetration for farmers continues to improve” said Mr. Aggarwal.
Also Read: Union Bank sanctions loans for 150 Garuda Kisan drones under Kisan Pushpak scheme
(For Latest Agriculture News & Updates, follow Krishak Jagat on Google News)
