Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said the government is promoting natural farming and digital agriculture as part of efforts to safeguard farmers against climate challenge for which emphasis was laid in the 2022-23 budget.

Modi also inaugurated the 216-feet tall Statue of Equality commemorating 11th century Bhakti Saint Sri Ramanachurya at Shamshabad (read below).

More than 80 per cent farmers in India are small farmers and for them climate change becomes big problem even as the Union Budget reflects the country's commitment towards green future , he said at the inauguration of the Golden Jubilee Celebrations of ICRISAT (International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics) here.

"To save our farmers from climate challenges, our focus is on the fusion of back to basics and march to the future. Our focus is on the more than 80 per cent small farmers of the country who need us the most. You must have noted that unprecedented emphasis has been laid in this budget on natural farming and digital agriculture," he said.

Taking forward the efforts made over the years, climate action was given a lot of priority in this year's budget. This budget promotes India's commitment towards a green future in every sector, he said.

The Prime Minister said that the worst affected by climate change are the people on the last rung of development with little resources. India has set a target of Net-Zero by 2070 and also highlighted the need for Lifestyle for Environment, Modi said adding Pro-Planet people is a movement that connects every community, every individual with climate responsibility to deal with climate challenges.

The Prime Minister said that India's goal is not just increasing food grain production. India has enough surplus food grain to run one of the world's biggest food security programmes.

We are focusing on food security as well as nutrition security. With this vision, we have developed many bio-fortified varieties in the last seven years, he explained.

Highlighting the depth of ancient experience of Indian agriculture, he mentioned 15 Agro-Climatic Zones and six seasons of the country. Stating that digital agriculture is an important factor in changing India, Modi said it is the future and India's talented youth can do a great job towards it.

Modi said India is working on a dual strategy as on the one hand more area is brought under irrigation through water conservation and connecting of rivers and on the other hand, work is being done on micro-irrigation to increase water use efficiency in areas with limited irrigation. The Prime Minister said that the National Mission for self-reliance in edible oils indicates India's new approach and it aims to increase palm oil area by 6 lakh hectare. This will help Indian farmers at every level and will prove very beneficial for the farmers of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, the Prime Minister pointed out.

He also dwelled on the steps taken to strengthen post-harvest infrastructure like creating cold chain storage capacity of 35 million tonnes and creation of 1 lakh crore rupees Agriculture Infrastructure Fund.

The Prime Minister noted the auspicious occasion of Basant Panchami and congratulated ICRISAT for 50 years. Underlining the importance of the next 25 years for both the country and also for ICRISAT, the Prime Minister stressed the need for new goals and working for them.

Modi praised ICRISAT for its contribution in helping agricultural growth in large parts of the world including India saying with 50 years experience its research and technology made agriculture easy and sustainable in difficult times. Modi also released commemorative postal stamp on the occasion of ICRISAT's 50th anniversary celebrations. He also launched the Climate Change Research Facility on Plant Protection.

PM Modi unveils Sri Ramanujacharya's 216-foot statue

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday inaugurated a 216-foot tall 'Statue of Equality', commemorating Sri Ramanujacharya who promoted the idea of equality in all aspects of living, and drove home the 11th century Bhakti saint's message of equality of all. Hailing Ramanujacharya's message of equality of all humans, Modi said the saint has been an inspiration to the country's unity and integrity. Though he was born in the south, Sri Ramanujacharya's influence spread throughout the country, he said.

Modi, who is on a day's visit to Hyderabad, visited the Ashram of Sri Tridandi Chinna Jeeyar Swamy where the statue was installed. The statue of equality commemorates Sri Ramanujacharya who promoted the idea of equality in all aspects of living, including faith, caste and creed.

The inauguration of the statue is part of the ongoing 12-day celebrations of his 1,000th birth anniversary.