(a) whether due to shortage of funds various agricultural research projects are suffering;
(b) if so, the details thereof;
(c) the names of projects which have been affected due to shortage of funds;
(d) the steps being taken by the Government to overcome this problem; and
(e) the details of future plans to give support to agricultural research projects?
THE MINISTER OF AGRICULTURE(SHRI SHARAD PAWAR)
(a) No, Sir.
(b) & (c):Do not arise.
(d) In order to address the emerging challenges, the Department has prioritized its research agenda so that research projects are not subjected to shortage of funds.
(e) The details are given in Annexure-I.
Annexure-I
THE DETAILS OF FUTURE PLAN TO GIVE SUPPORT TO AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH PROJECTS OF THE DEPARTMENT
For the Xth Five Year Plan, the Department was allocated Rs.5368 crore including Rs.500 crore to establish the new KVKs in the remaining rural districts of the Country and Rs.68 crore for Agricultural University, Jammu. During the first three years the Department was allocated Rs.2400 crore(RE). In the current financial year the Plan Allocations have been enhanced from Rs.1000 crore (BE-2004-05) to Rs.1150 crore including Rs.50 crore, which the Government provided as fund for Strategic Research in Agriculture. The Department also proposes to gainfully spend the remaining amount during the leftover period of the Xth Plan. Recently, the Expenditure Finance Committee have recommended Rs.198.90 crore for addressing the issue of quality seed and planting material. The Government have also approved the research proposals of the Department relating to Organic Farming, Transgenics, Insect-Biosystematics, Veterinary Type Cultures, Climate Change etc. to address the priority areas of research. The future plan of the Department has also taken into consideration the major concerns faced by Indian Agriculture such as water management, soil degradation and fatigue, genetic erosion, biotic and abiotic stresses, slow pace of diversification, high post-harvest losses, energy management, markets & trade, and increasing knowledge lag etc. Research has been re-oriented accordingly, to address these concerns.