Lucknow: Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has said that the most effective way to take the agriculture sector in Uttar Pradesh to new heights is to adopt the cultivation of pulses and oilseeds along with sugarcane on a large scale. He said that this model not only doubles the income of sugarcane farmers but also has the potential to multiply it. The Chief Minister chaired a high-level meeting on this subject held on Monday and directed to implement this scheme in mission mode in the next five years.

Cultivation of pulses and oilseeds along with sugarcane

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said that intercropping of high-value crops like mustard, lentils, urad and moong with sugarcane provides farmers with additional production and stable income throughout the year. This strengthens their economic condition and makes agriculture more sustainable. He said that the expansion of cultivable land in the state is now limited, hence the most effective way to increase production is to produce more crops per unit area. With this approach, sugarcane based intercropping farming can become a new model for the agricultural future of Uttar Pradesh, which provides farmers with higher production, higher earnings and protection from risk.

The scheme will be implemented in mission mode till 2026-31

The Chief Minister said that this scheme will be implemented in mission mode from the year 2026-27 to 2030-31. At present, sugarcane is cultivated in 29.50 lakh hectare area in the state, which includes 14.64 lakh hectare newly sown area and 14.86 lakh hectare paddy area. By adding intercropping of oilseeds and pulses in such a large area, there will be a significant increase in production and the self-reliance of the state and the country in the oilseeds-pulses sector will be strengthened. The Chief Minister directed that this scheme should be implemented through Agricultural Science Centers and Agricultural Universities and the selection of intercrops should be done on scientific and practical basis.

Crops will be selected scientifically

The Chief Minister said that as per the recommendations of IISR, priority should be given to mustard and lentils in Rabi season and urad and moong in Zaid season. He stressed that the biggest strength of this model is that farmers get additional crop, additional profit and additional security without affecting the sugarcane yield. Emphasis was also laid on preparing a year-wise roadmap for the scheme and creating a clear structure of assistance and grants for its successful implementation.

Farmers' income and contribution to the state economy

The Chief Minister also said that large-scale adoption of intercropping would provide faster cash flow to farmers and reduce monocropping risk. This will make agriculture more stable and sustainable. He clarified that this scheme will not be limited only to the farmers associated with the sugarcane sector, but will bring change in the agricultural scenario of the entire state. The additional production will directly increase the income of farmers and will also contribute significantly to the Gross State Value Added (GVA) of the state.