New Delhi, Jan 5: India has surpassed China to become the world’s largest producer of rice with an output of 150.18 million metric tons, Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said Monday.

The minister said that China’s rice production stood at 145.28 million tonnes. India has achieved great success in the development of high-yielding seeds and was now a leading exporter of rice to world markets, he added.

Chouhan launched 184 improved varieties of 25 field crops, developed by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), at an event held in the national capital. The 184 varieties that were released include 122 cereals, 6 pulses, 13 oilseeds, 11 fodder crops, 6 sugarcane, 24 cotton, and one each of jute and tobacco.

The Agriculture Minister also directed officials to ensure that these new varieties reach farmers quickly. Explaining the significance of the new advanced varieties, the minister said that farmers will benefit as they will help in achieving higher yields and better quality of produce. The minister also asked farm scientists to focus on increasing the production of pulses and oilseeds to make India self-sufficient.

The minister also highlighted that as many as 3,236 high-yielding varieties have been approved in the last 11 years since the Prime Minister Narendra Modi government came to power, as compared to 3,969 varieties that were between 1969 and 2014.

The newly released varieties have been developed to address challenges confronting the agricultural sector such as climate change, soil salinity, drought, and other biotic and abiotic stresses, while also supporting natural and organic farming practices.

The minister pointed out that India has progressed from being a food-deficient country to becoming a leading supplier of agricultural products to global markets.

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Chouhan said that the country has entered a new era of an agricultural revolution on the strength of the development of high-yielding and climate-resilient seeds. The Union Minister said this achievement is the result of the collective efforts of the ICAR’s all-India coordinated projects on crops, state and central agricultural universities, and private seed companies.

(IANS)