New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said that previous governments remained content merely with farmers filling the country’s granaries, but that approach is no longer sufficient.
Markets, weather patterns and technology have all changed, and these evolving realities were overlooked for long.
Addressing the Bharat Agriculture Conference 2026 organised by the India Today Group at Bharat Mandapam, the Prime Minister stressed that national progress is impossible without modernising agriculture and empowering farmers.
He recalled the Saptadhara (seven streams of strength) he had outlined from the Red Fort on Independence Day, of which agriculture forms a key pillar.
PM Modi noted that poverty in rural areas has declined rapidly. Over the last decade, India’s agricultural growth rate has exceeded 4 per cent—a level of sustained growth the sector had not witnessed since Independence.
During the same period, a large number of people in rural India have successfully overcome poverty. Linking farming to the nation’s cultural fabric, the Prime Minister observed that with Diwali just over and the festive spirit of Chhath now upon the country, several major festivals remain deeply connected to agriculture.
Bihu, Onam and Baisakhi, he said, show that farming is not merely an economic activity but an integral part of India’s culture, traditions and the foundation of its social life.
The two-day conference brought together over 2,000 farmers, policymakers, industry representatives and global experts under the theme of building a ‘Smart Kisan, Viksit Bharat’.
Reiterating his vision, PM Modi said that simply ensuring full grain warehouses cannot be the end goal. The sector must adapt to new market opportunities, changing climatic conditions and technological advances so that farmers move beyond subsistence and become true stakeholders in the country’s development journey.
The Prime Minister’s remarks reinforced the government’s focus on transforming agriculture into a modern, resilient and remunerative sector as a core requirement for achieving a developed India.
(IANS)
