Bhubaneswar: Subroto Bagchi, Chief Advisor to the Government of Odisha’s Institutional Capacity Building, chaired a crucial gathering at Krushi Bhavan today, which focused on the Odisha Millets Mission (OMM) and the upcoming International Convention on Millets. During the meeting, he praised the key milestones achieved by the Odisha Millets Mission and advised the team to create a long-term strategic intent statement for the mission, with the target years set at 2030 and 2036.
The meeting, which took place at the 3rd floor Conference Hall of Krushi Bhavan at 10 AM, was attended by several key officials, including Dr. Arabinda Kumar Padhee, Principal Secretary of the Department of Agriculture & Farmers’ Empowerment (DA&FE), Rohit Kumar Lenka, Director of Horticulture, Joint Director of Agriculture (OMM), Technical Experts, Scheme Officers, and other representatives of Odisha Millets Mission.
The primary objective of the meeting was to seek expert advice from Bagchi regarding various facets and objectives of Odisha Millets Mission and the forthcoming International Convention on Millets scheduled for November 9th and 10th, 2023.
Dr. Padhee warmly welcomed all participants and began the session by presenting an overview of the Odisha Millets Mission program and highlighting its notable achievements to date. He emphasized that the OMM program has adopted a ‘fork to farm’ approach, which aims to create substantial consumer demand for millets, ultimately encouraging farmers to cultivate millets instead of conventional commercial cereals. The Principal Secretary also elaborated on the incentives and benefits offered to millet farmers and women self-help groups under the Mission Shakti initiative. He proudly announced the notification of four traditional millet landraces, a pioneering achievement applauded by Shri Bagchi. OMM’s focus on stakeholder collaboration for program implementation was also discussed, as well as various activities planned for the International Convention on Millets.
Bagchi provided valuable insights during the meeting. Advising to create a long-term strategic intent statement for the mission, with 2030 and 2036 as the target years, he recommended that policies and guidelines be flexible to accommodate necessary modifications over time to address challenges effectively. Bagchi also proposed innovative approaches, including agri-tourism, emphasizing the joyful aspects associated with millets to encourage consumption in every household, and engaging with prominent sports personalities and celebrities to act as millet brand ambassadors.
He highlighted the importance of harnessing the enthusiasm of grassroots-level YouTubers and organizations as millets ambassadors to promote millets more widely in society. Bagchi stressed that the OMM should strive to position Odisha as a scalable model, not only within India but also on the international stage, by institutionalizing these strategies.
As a result of the meeting, it was decided to hold a lecture by Bagchi on Odisha Millets Mission and International Convention on Millets on November 1, 2023, at 10:30 AM. Bagchi extended his best wishes to the program, appreciating the progress made and looking forward to the mission’s successful implementation.
