The
Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved the implementation of the National
Mission on Agricultural Extension and Technology (NMAET) during the 12th
Plan period. The extension of NMAET and its components will
be expanded and up-scaled appropriately and implemented in a more coordinated
and convergent manner.
The
Mission will have a total outlay of Rs. 13073.08 crore,
with Government of India’s share of Rs. 11390.68 crore
and State share of Rs.1682.40 crore.
NMAET
consists of 4 Sub Missions:
(i)
Sub Mission on
Agricultural Extension (SMAE)
(ii)
Sub-Mission on Seed and
Planting Material (SMSP)
(iii)
Sub Mission on
Agricultural Mechanization (SMAM)
(iv)
Sub Mission on Plant
Protection and Plant Quarantine (SMPP)
Agricultural
Technology, including the adoption/ promotion of critical inputs, and improved
agronomic practices were being disseminated under 17 different schemes of the
Department of Agriculture & Cooperation during the 11th Plan. The Modified
Extension Reforms Scheme was introduced in 2010 with the objective of
strengthening extension machinery and utilizing it for synergizing
interventions under these schemes under the umbrella of the Agriculture
Technology Management Agency (ATMA).
The
NMAET has been envisaged as the next step towards this objective through the
amalgamation of these schemes. The Mission
Document has been
prepared in keeping
with the recommendations of the
Working Group of the Planning Commission and suggestions and inputs received from extensive consultation
with stakeholders, particularly farmers.
The
common threads running across all 4 Sub-Missions in NMAET are Extension and
Technology. Therefore, while 4 separate Sub-Missions are being proposed for
administrative convenience, these are inextricably linked to each other at the
field level and most components thereof have to be disseminated among farmers
and other stakeholders through a strong extension network.
The
aim of the Mission is to restructure and strengthen agricultural extension to
enable delivery of appropriate technology and improved agronomic practices to
farmers. This is envisaged to be achieved by a judicious mix of extensive
physical outreach and interactive methods of information dissemination, use of
ICT, popularisation of modern and appropriate
technologies, capacity building and institution strengthening to promote mechanisation, availability of quality seeds, plant
protection etc. and encourage aggregation of Farmers into Interest Groups (FIGs)
to form Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs).
In
order to overcome systemic challenges being faced by the Extension System,
there is a need for a focused approach in mission mode to disseminate
appropriate technologies and relevant information to larger number of farmer
households through inter personal and innovative methods of technology
dissemination including ICT.
To
alleviate the challenges in the seed sector, there is a need to increase
production of certified seeds, upgrade quality of farm saved seeds, coverage of
at least 10 percent villages under the Seed Village Programme,
production of 100 lakh quintals of seeds/year through
the Farmers' Seed System, capacity building of the public and private sectors, upgradation of quality control of seeds, upgradation of seed production infrastructure and implementation
of the Protection of Plant Varieties and Farmers’ Rights Authority (PPVFRA) Act
effectively.
Background:
Agricultural
productivity has a positive correlation with level of farm mechanization. For
accelerated growth in farm mechanization in the current decade, there is a need
to include the large community of small and marginal farmers into the fold of
cost effective and remunerative mechanized farming, to help sustain desired
agricultural growth and to enhance agricultural productivity.
Plant
Protection plays a significant role in achieving targets of crop production.
Strengthening regulatory framework for management of pesticides and plant
quarantine are important issues which are required to be taken up during the 12th
Plan also. In view of concerns for food safety and impact on India's food and
agricultural trade, there is a need to monitor and analyze pesticide residues
in agricultural commodities in different agro-ecological regions of the
country.
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SC/VK