Bihar’s agri export revenue rose by over 800 times in a decade and a half

The Nitish Kumar government in Bihar on Friday asserted that the state has witnessed an exponential growth in agricultural exports and that the revenue generated thereof has registered a more than 800 times increase over the last decade and a half.

This was stated by a senior agriculture department official in course of a presentation made before the Chief Minister at the latter’s official residence here.

''In 2006, the value of the state’s agricultural exports stood at Rs three crore. By 2020, it shot up to Rs 2617 crore'', said agriculture secretary N Sarvan Kumar while making the presentation.

Incidentally, Kumar, who is serving his fourth consecutive term in office, assumed power in the end of 2005.

Expressing satisfaction over the state of affairs, the chief minister underscored the need for ensuring that agricultural growth ''must not only lead to an increase in produce but also bring about a rise in the income of the farmers''.

Noting that the state’s economy was primarily driven by the farming section, Kumar pointed out that it is with this aspect in mind that his government has come out with three five-year ''agriculture road maps'' so far.

He also expressed satisfaction over ''contract farming'' gaining popularity in the state and establishment of new agriculture institutes and colleges inspiring the young generation to take up the field as their area of expertise.

The meeting was also attended, among others, by agriculture minister Amarendra Pratap Singh and Chief Secretary Tripurari Sharan.