Bhopal, 25 February (HS): Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan said ,Madhya Pradesh has immense investment possibilities. Madhya Pradesh is the first state in the country to have a land bank of one lakh hectares along with the necessary infrastructure for investment. He said that the country is leading in the production of tomato, peas, onion, garlic, chilli, wheat and rice under horticultural crops. He said that due to abundant production of agro-horticultural produce, the farmer is not able to get the full price of the crop. Therefore, it is necessary to promote food processing in the state. This will add value to the crops. Both the farmer and the production unit will be benefited. Similarly, India can become a world leader in food processing all over the world.
Union Agriculture Minister Chauhan was addressing the session on Seed to Self in Launching Investment Opportunity in MP Agri Food and Dairy Sector organized by the Department of Agriculture, Horticulture and Food Processing at the Global Investors Summit-2025 on Tuesday. Chauhan said that the Union Agriculture Ministry is developing new varieties of seeds and saplings to increase crop production.
To ensure better demand for the country’s agricultural production abroad, the Government of India has made the export duty on rice zero. Also, the import duty on oil has been increased to 27 percent. The food processing units of the country will benefit from this. He also assured all investors of full support for investing in Madhya Pradesh.
Horticulture and Food Processing Minister Narayan Singh Kushwaha warmly welcomed all the investors and subject experts who came to the Invest Madhya Pradesh Global Investors Summit-2025. He said that Madhya Pradesh is famous all over the world for its rich agriculture, horticulture and food processing capabilities.
The horticultural products of the state have made a distinct identity in the country. Horticultural crops are being produced in 27 lakh hectares of area in the state. A target has been set to increase it to 32 lakh hectares in the next 5 years and production from 400 lakh metric tonnes to 500 lakh tonnes. Madhya Pradesh’s share in the total organic production of the country is 40 percent. The state’s Riyawan garlic and Sundaraja mango have their own identity in the world market. Our government has identified specific crops of 52 districts under the ‘One District-One Product’ initiative by implementing special investment schemes in the field of agriculture and food processing.
The new investment policies made by the state government have been made investor-friendly. Along with this, suggestions from investors have also been invited by the state government for determining these policies. A single window system has been put in place for investment promotion, in which allotment of land and all types of permissions will be available in the shortest possible time. The state government is committed to increasing the income, employment, investment and export of farmers.
Agriculture Production Commissioner Mohammad Suleman said that there is a need to have a detailed discussion on transporting the crop from the farm to the market and providing it a reasonable price. He highlighted the importance of agriculture, animal husbandry and horticulture in Madhya Pradesh and their export possibilities. In the program, there was a wide discussion on new opportunities for investment in agriculture, food processing and dairy sectors of the state. In this program, various experts highlighted the importance of innovation, technological progress and government policies for farmers, entrepreneurs and investors.
Principal Secretary Horticulture and Food Processing Anupam Rajan said that a better environment for investment is being created in the state. Under the strong infrastructure of the state, 8 food parks, 2 mega food parks, 5 agro-processing clusters and a logistics park are providing excellent opportunities to investors. Along with this, land allotment and all types of permissions are being made available promptly through single window system. Many steps are being taken from mini schemes to advanced frozen logistics infrastructure, which will ensure increase in farmers’ income, employment and export. For the overall development of horticulture and its growth at the global level, special crop based clusters have been selected with the support of the Government of India. For example, clusters of chilli in Nimar, coriander in Guna-Rajgarh, ginger in Bundelkhand, turmeric in Baghelkhand, banana in Burhanpur, peas, potato in Jabalpur, Dewas and Indore have been selected. For this, a provision of Rs 500 crore has been made by the Central Government in which the state government will invest a proportionate amount. He informed that units worth Rs 930 crore are being set up by small entrepreneurs under the Pradhan Mantri Micro Food Upgradation Scheme.
Union Secretary Agriculture Subrat Gupta said that food processing is an integral part of Indian culture. Food processing is used continuously in our homes. In the changing environment, the demand for ready-to-eat food and ready-to-eat food is constantly increasing. With this, India can gain an important place in the world. The Central Government has made a provision of Rs 1000 crore to encourage food processing.
Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
