Bhubaneswar: Odisha will become the first state to organize a two-day International Convention on Millets at Janta Maidan here on November 9th & 10th.
A press conference on International Convention on Millets (ICM) organised under the Chairmanship of Minister of Agriculture & Farmers’ Empowerment, Ranendra Pratap Swain in the presence of Dr. Arabinda Kumar Padhee, Principal Secretary, Department of Agriculture & Farmers’ Empowerment and Prem Chandra Chaudhary, Director of Agriculture & Food Production at Auditorium Hall of Krushi Bhawan.
At the outset, Dr. Arabinda Kumar Padhee Principal Secretary, Department of Agriculture & Farmers’ Empowerment (DA&FE), welcomed the participants. He shared that a pre-ICM lecture was also delivered by Subroto Bagchi, who emphasised the importance of making Odisha a globally significant player in Millets by 2036. He shared that Odisha should focus on the minor millets and create an ecosystem which attracts investments and business without compromising on the commitments to the most vulnerable. He asked the Department of Agriculture to make a long-term action plan with milestones to be achieved in 2030 and 2036.
Different Committees were constituted such as Apex Committee under Chairmanship of Chief Minister of Odisha, Steering Committee under Chairmanship of Chief Secretary of Odisha, Organizing Committee under Chairmanship of Principal Secretary, DA&FE and Executive Committee under Chairmanship of Director of Agriculture & Food Production. Several preparatory meetings at the level of Minister of Agriculture & Farmers’ Empowerment, Chief Secretary, Chairperson, PPVFRA, Principal Secretary, Department of Agriculture & Farmers’ Empowerment and Director of Agriculture & Food Production, Odisha were held for the preparatory review of different activities for the Convention.
This was followed by a detailed presentation on the two-day International Convention on Millets by Prem Chandra Chaudhary, Director, Agriculture & Food Production, Odisha. He shared that the United Nations declared 2023 as an International Year of Millets, and Odisha celebrated this year through various promotional millet activities at the state level and district level. Odisha Millets Mission organised millet mother events with Anganwadis workers and pregnant lactating mothers, food festivals, quiz and essay competitions in schools, sporting events with Sports Deptt, rallies, awareness campaigns and many other activities throughout the year. Collaboration was also taken up with hotel and restaurant associations, chef associations, hospitals and doctors, food bloggers, residential welfare associations, wall paintings and others in the urban locations of Odisha. Postcard initiatives have been conducted at schools such as KISS, KIIT International School and Loyola School, where the students actively participated in writing heartfelt messages for farmers and delegates.
Under the leadership of the Chief Minister, Odisha has also dedicated 10th November as Millet Divas. Taking it to the next level, the Government of Odisha will become the first state to organise a Two-day International Convention on Millets at Janta Maidan, Bhubaneswar on November 9th & 10th. The theme of the ICM is Millets – Ancient Grains for Modern Challenges. It will consist of farmer engagement activities, displaying emerging technologies and machinery, experience centres, technical sessions, policy roundtables, B2B meetings, International Food Festival, Quiz competitions, Cooking competitions and many more.
The international convention shall focus on the tribal heritage of millets and showcase success stories of millet entrepreneurship of Mission Shakti WSHGs. UN agencies such as FAO, WFP, IFAD, Agri counsellors of Southeast Asian & Middle Eastern countries, African countries and European countries, embassies of several countries, Agriculture Secretaries of different states and many others will attend the session. 31 no. of technical and non-technical sessions are being planned to be conducted at the convention. Critical sessions such as policy roundtable, experience sharing by other countries, agro-biodiversity, millets & tribes, promotion of millets through hotels etc, are planned for the ICM. A unique musical concert on climate change and Millet by Three-time Grammy Award Winner Ricky Kej is also scheduled on the 9th of November Evening. Eminent Chef Vikas Khanna has also agreed to grace the occasion and interact with hotels, restaurants, food bloggers, WSHG members, Millet Mothers on Millet cuisine
Principal Secretary DAFE shared highlighting cultural and anthropological linkages between tribal culture, their knowledge systems and food systems. ICM 2023 shall also showcase Millet diversity, forgotten foods and climate-resilient millet cropping systems of tribal communities. For the first time in the world, a Foundation Guide on millets developed in collaboration with many international experts under the overall guidance of the Asia Pacific Association for Agriculture Research Institutions will be released. This will be Odisha’s knowledge product contribution to the World. A special Coffee Table Book capturing the journey and success of Odisha Millets Mission, especially the work of Mission Shakti WSHGs, has been developed with funding and guidance of the World Food Programme, which will also be released. In addition, special publications focussing on Millets and Tribes, Millets & SDG will also be released. He shared that the Indian School of Business and York University have studied the Odisha Millet Mission and have developed learning and evaluation reports, which shall also be released.
Minister of Agriculture & Farmers’ Empowerment Department shared that the State Cabinet have approved an estimated budget budget of 2687 Crore 45 Lakhs rupees for four years from 2023-24 to 2026-27 for promotion of millets in the State. He also said that efforts have been taken to ensure at least one or more female speakers in all panels. Special care is being taken to ensure the International Convention is disability friendly. Each seminar hall will have transliteration facilities to ensure translation from English, Hindi, and Odia is available to ensure active participation. In addition to transliteration services, in the farmer’s sessions, special translators are available to summarise the sessions in the local language and for farmer interaction—machinery and technology demonstration for the benefit of WSHGs/FPOs/Startups.
Many interactive activities, such as Postcard exchange, including mural painting, are planned to engage the children. Schools will be actively engaged in collaboration with S&ME Deptt. International Food Festival is planned with different cuisines on millets with a focus on highlighting tribal cuisine with the active participation of food bloggers. Special arrangements are made for the comfortable travel and stay of farmers/Women SHGs/FPOs from different districts. Many farmers across the state shall be participating in the convention to get exposure to the latest technologies and scientific advancements. ICM 2023 is aimed to become the most farmer-friendly international convention. The Director of Agriculture & Food Production provided a vote of thanks at the end of the press conference. He wished the best to the entire team for making the International Convention on Millets an instrumental event to be remembered for years. Minister Swain launches Ama Millets Mission song during the Press Meet.
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