Gujarat to Honour 93 Progressive Farmers With Best ATMA Awards

Governor Acharya Devvrat will chair the event, which Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, Agriculture Minister Jitu Vaghani and Minister of State for Agriculture Ramesh Katara will attend.

Of the 93 awards, 10 will be presented at the state level while 83 will go to district-level awardees. The categories include 15 awards for natural farming, 45 for fruit, flower and vegetable cultivation, 15 for animal husbandry, and eight for value-added products, packaging and related areas.

The programme will also mark the launch of around 100 sales centres for natural farming produce across Gujarat. Of these, 24 will be located at municipal corporation and municipality headquarters, 18 at district headquarters and 58 at taluka headquarters.

According to the state Agriculture Department, the centres are intended to strengthen the connection between farmers, markets and consumers by creating additional avenues for natural farming producers to sell their output while making such products more accessible to buyers.

A Memorandum of Understanding will also be signed between the Directorate of Agriculture and the Space Applications Centre of the Indian Space Research Organisation to expand the use of satellite and geospatial technology in agriculture.

The proposed technology-based system is expected to provide farmers with advisories at different stages of cultivation, from sowing through harvesting. It will also support crop-wise estimates of cultivated area and production, besides helping assess damage caused to crops.

The event will additionally see appointment letters being handed over to 14 newly selected Assistant Directors of Agriculture in Class-II posts. The appointments are aimed at strengthening the state's agricultural extension network and improving services available to farmers.

Alongside the main ceremony in Gandhinagar, programmes have been scheduled at 34 locations across Gujarat, where ministers, MPs and legislators will participate. Assembly Speaker Shankar Chaudhary is scheduled to attend the event at Vav-Tharad, while Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi and Assembly Deputy Speaker Purnesh Modi are expected at the programme in Surat.

Thousands of farmers from different parts of Gujarat are also expected to participate in the main event through digital platforms.

The ATMA awards are intended to recognise farmers adopting innovative and progressive practices in agriculture and allied sectors, with the programme also serving as a platform for promoting newer farming technologies and market linkages.