A day long national seminar on regeneration of millet jointly organized by PGI and MGSIPA
Chandigarh: In view of diversification of crops, there is also a need to emphasize on the cultivation of millet. The biggest reason for the neglect of millet is that money has not been allocated for research on this crop likewise wheat and rice. But now the time has come to encourage this crop and make nutritious millet a part of your diet. These sentiment were expressed by Anirudh Tiwari (IAS) Director General, Mahatma Gandhi State Institute of Public Administration (MGSIPA) while addressing the delegates across the country who converge for the national seminar on ‘Millets for Enhancing Soil Restoration and Healthy Food Accessibility’. The symposium was organized by MGSIPA, Department of Community Madison and School of Public Health (DCM SPH), PGI and Indian Institute of Millets Research at MGSIPA campus in Sector 26 wherein researchers and industries associated with this Millets movement participated.
In her welcome address, Poonam Khanna, the organizer and Associate Professor of Nutrition in the Department of DCA and SPH, PGI, she apprised about the aspects of fulfilment of the objective of the event. She informed that on the initiative of India, 2023 has been declared by the UN as the International Year of the Millets. Emphasizing on the importance of millets she said this crop not only fulfills the malnutrition of a body but also plays an important role in maintaining the quality of the soil.
In his address, MGSIPA’s Director Girish Dayalan said that India is the world’s largest producer of millet. With a view to capitalize on this record production, PM Narendra Modi has also caught the attention of the people through his program Mann Ki Baat. He said that from the year 2018, the National Food Security Mission has started many programs in the upliftment of millet.
Surendra Verma, Chairman, Citizens Awareness Group was in the opinion of making millet affordable for the people’s acceptance along with Govt’s encouragement to its producers. During the program, Dr. Dayakar Rao, Principal Scientist, IIMR, Hyderabad, Dr. Raj Bhandari, Member, NITI Aayog, Professor Deepti Gulati, Chair, NIFTEM, Sonipat and others also expressed their views on the subject.
