Agriculture and Allied Sector Accounts for About 14% of the Country S GDP, 13% of Overall

1. INTRODUCTION :

Agriculture and allied sector accounts for about 14% of the country’s GDP, 13% of overall exports and provides employment to over 50% of the work force in the country. Being both a source of livelihood and food security for a vast majority of the population, its performance assumes great significance for poverty reduction and gender equality. In order to achieve this objective, various schemes & programmes have been launched by the Government with emphasis on improving farm productivity, enhancing agricultural research, education and extension enabling development, infusion of appropriate technologies and improving the conditions of farming community on sustainable basis.

Seed is the most critical of all agricultural inputs and determines the performance and efficacy of other inputs for enhancing productivity and production of various crops. It is, therefore essential that quality seeds with good genetic potential, appropriate to the agro-climatic conditions are produced locally in a timely manner, in sufficient quantity at affordable price and made available to the farmers.Agriculture is being a State subject and production and distribution of high yielding seeds to the farmers is primarily the responsibility of respective state Govt. through the State Department of Agriculture, State Seeds Corporation, State Agricultural Universities (SAUs), State Seed Farms, Seed Cooperatives, Agro Industries Corporations / State Marketing Federation, Privates. etc. The Govt. of India supplements the efforts of State through Central Seed Producing Agency-National Seed Corporation Ltd. and provides assistance through various crop Development Programme/Schemes.

A Central Sector Scheme ‘Development and Strengthening of Infrastructure Facilities for Production and Distribution of Quality Seeds’ was implemented on all India basis from the year 2005-06 aiming at ensuring production and multiplication of high yielding certified/quality seeds of all agricultural crops and making them available to the farmers. Although the existing scheme has contributed in increasing the availability of quality seeds in the country over the years, a need has been felt to upgrade and expand the existing scheme into a Mission mode in order to include new/emerging technologies in production of quality/certified seeds, improve seed testing laboratories, support seed producing agencies in adopting new seed producing technologies etc. It will improve the availability of quality seeds to the farmers and at a reasonable price in the Country.

Accordingly, during the XII Plan, a Sub-Mission for Seeds Planting Material (SMSP) under National Mission on Agricultural Extension and Technology (NMAET) is being implemented. The SMSPcover’s the entire gamut of seed production chain, from production of nucleus seed to supply of certified seeds to the farmers, to provide support for creation of infrastructure conducive for overall development of the seed sector, support to the public seed producing organisations for improving their capacity and quality of seed production, create dedicated seed bank to meet unforeseen circumstances of natural calamities, etc. The other Central Sector Scheme implemented by Seed Division, viz., Implementation of PVP Legislation has also been subsumed under the SMSP.

Mission targets

• Increasing production of certified/ quality seeds of agricultural crops in the country.
• Increasing SRRmore particularly to achieve higher SRR in crops like gram, lentil and groundnut etc. The Target/SRR is proposed below:-

No. / Type / Existing SRR / Proposed SRR
1 / Self-pollinated crops / 25% / 33%
2 / Cross-pollinated crops / 33% / 50%
3 / Hybrids / 100% / 100%

• Upgrading the quality of farm saved seeds with specific objective to cover 10% villages and produce 100 lakh quintals of seeds each year through Seed Village Programme
• Encouraging seed treatment particularly for farm saved seeds.
• Strengthening the seed multiplication chain through assistance to public and private sector.
• Popularizing new varieties to encourage varietal replacement.
• Promoting new technologies and methodologies in seed production, processing, testing etc.

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2. VISION, MISSION, GOALS & OBJECTIVES

VISION:

• To encourage farmers for Seed Production of different agricultural crops at Village level itself.
• To promote the farmers for use of certified/qualities seed including HYV seeds.
• To make the farmers self sufficient in respect of seeds.
• Enhancing productivity & farmer’s incomes and bridge the yield gap.
• Creation/Strengthening infrastructure facilities for production and distribution of quality seeds in public sector and private sector.

MISSION:

• To make available quality seeds to the farmers locally.
• To encourage farmers, FPOs for taking Seed production of all crops including oilseeds, Pulses, green manure and fodder crops, making available quality seeds of these crops to farmers locally.
• To increase farmers income through seed production.
• To Train the farmers for Seed Production and Seed Technology at village level.
• Supplementing the efforts of State Government for farmers.
• Promoting implementation of DBT in distribution of seeds subsidy to the intended farmers/beneficiaries bank account.

Goals:

• To bridge the gap in productivity levels by using quality seeds
• Maintaining sustainability with profitability.
• Creation of seed infrastructure for production and distribution of seeds to the farmers locally
• To make available certified/quality seeds at affordable /subsidized cost in remote and hill States as available in the other part of the country.

Objective:

• To upgrade the quality of farm saved seeds.
• To make available financial assistance for distribution of foundation/certified seed at subsidized cost for production of quality seeds.
• To train the farmers on seeds production and SeedTechnology aspects for the seed crops grown in the Seed villages.
• To encourage farmers to develop seed storage capacity of appropriate quality.
• To encourage the farmers for quality seed production.
• To create/strengthening infrastructure facilities in Public Sector for seed cleaning, drying, grading, processing, treating, packing and seed storage for production and distribution of quality seeds in public sector and private sector.
• To make timely availability of certified/quality seeds at affordable price to the farmers of hill remote areas of North-Eastern States including Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttarakhand and hilly areas of West Bengal as available in the other parts of the country.