Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan stated that the country's food grain production has increased by 44% over the past ten years. Responding to supplementary questions during Question Hour in the Lok Sabha today, Mr. Chouhan said that the country has achieved a new milestone in food grain production, reaching 357 million tonnes. He further stated that, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, several agricultural reforms and policies have been implemented to benefit farmers and increase food grain production.
The Minister also informed that India has surpassed China to become the world's largest producer of rice. He added that the production of pulses has also increased significantly, rising from over 19 million tonnes to around 26 million tonnes.
Mr. Chouhan said that the Pradhan Mantri Dhan-Dhaanya Yojana has been implemented in 100 districts across the country to ensure balanced growth in food grain production. He also stated that the West Bengal government has not implemented this scheme. The Minister said that four districts of the state – Purulia, Darjeeling, Alipurduar, and Jhargram – were selected under the program to help farmers and increase production.
Mr. Chouhan said that the Centre provided fertilizer subsidies worth 1.86 lakh crore rupees last year to make fertilizers affordable for farmers.