Report highlighted that while India accounts for nearly 80% of Asia’s and 20% of global millet production, the acreage and production of millets have stagnated over the years.
Reasons for Stagnant Millet Production
- Yield gap caused by labor shortages and insufficient fertilizer.
- Shift in consumer preferences and MSP-backed procurement schemes for fine cereals.
- Relatively shorter shelf life of crops posing storage issues.
About Millet (Shree Anna)
- Millets is a Kharif Crop.
- They are small cereal grains that belong to Poaceae family (grass family).
- They are nutri-cereals comprising of major millets (sorghum, pearl-millet, etc.) and minor millets (foxtail, kodo, etc.).
- They are rich source of micronutrients and contain 7-12% protein, 2-5% fat, 65-75% carbohydrates and 15-20% dietary fibre.
- India's millet productivity (excluding sorghum) was lower than China, Ethiopia, and Russia in 2022.
- India’s major millets producing states are Rajasthan, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, etc.
Initiatives taken to promote Millet
- National and International year of millets observed in 2018 and 2023 respectively.
- National Food Security Mission to increase production and productivity of millets in India.
- Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0 mandate supply of millets at least once a week and suitably integrated in Hot Cooked Meal.
