Om Birla calls for more efforts to develop agriculture sector

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Thursday said efforts should be made to further develop the country's agriculture sector as well as set up more agro-based projects.

Speaking at an event organised by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) here, he said having more agro-based projects would also help in reducing migration of people from rural to urban areas.

Amid the challenges due to the coronavirus pandemic, Birla said the rural economy remained strong. The rural economy and the work of farmers helped in ensuring that the country's economy did not collapse, he added.

There is a need to look at ways to further develop the country's agriculture sector, including food processing and value addition, Birla said.

Birla, who was the chief guest at the 'MSME National Conclave', also said the MSME sector is providing employment opportunities to crores of people and is also an economic engine as he stressed the need to bolster the segment.

He also said MSMEs are an important pillar of the Indian economy and account for manufacturing of more than 45 per cent of the country's products and 40 per cent of exports, respectively. India has over 3.2 crore MSMEs that provide employment to around 7 crore people, according to a release issued by the ICAI.

The institute also launched the MSME (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises) Mentorship Programme and 100 facilitation centres for MSME/GST.

''With strong ICAI network of 164 branches and 5 Regional Council and over 3 lakh members community, ICAI intends to reach out to MSME across the county to offer them a supporting hand in terms of policy and guidance,'' the release said.

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