AgriWalk held in Bengaluru to spotlight value addition, farmer empowerment
Bengaluru (PTI): Hundreds of citizens of different age groups took part in the 'AgriWalk' held at Cubbon Park here on Sunday, as the Karnataka Agriculture Department sought to spotlight the need to move agriculture beyond mere production and empower farmers as entrepreneurs, officials said.
The walk, organised as a pre-event to the upcoming International Trade Fair 2026, was held under the theme 'A Walk for Empowering Farmers' aimed at creating awareness about value addition, processing, branding and sustainable agricultural practices as pathways to improving farmers' incomes.
The Agriculture Minister N Cheluvarayaswamy flagged off the walk near the Cubbon Park Bandstand. The walk commenced at 6 am and covered a route passing through Queens Road, Vidhana Soudha, BBMP Tower, UB City Signal and Vittal Mallya Road, before concluding at the Bandstand.
Nearly 4,000 participants, including children, youth, women and senior citizens, registered for the AgriWalk, reflecting growing public interest in food systems, farmer welfare and healthy lifestyles. A Zumba dance session was organised as a warm-up activity prior to the walk, a release said.
The AgriWalk scheduled to be held from February 6 to 8 at Tripuravasini, Palace Grounds, here, it said.
Cheluvarayaswamy said, India's agricultural strategy is undergoing a major shift from mere production to profitability, with a renewed emphasis on value addition, branding and market linkages to turn farmers into entrepreneurs.
He said sustained initiatives by the Central and State governments have led to a steady rise in agricultural output, enabling the country to move ahead of many other nations. "The challenge now is not just producing more, but ensuring farmers earn more by processing their produce, adding value and accessing markets directly," he said.
The minister said empowering young farmers as agri-entrepreneurs is a key focus of the government's policy framework. This vision, he added, is at the heart of the upcoming agricultural fair.
He said the three-day event will serve as a platform connecting farmers with technology, branding opportunities and national markets. More than 300 stalls, including those of Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs), will showcase modern machinery, processing techniques and innovations spanning the entire agricultural value chain.
According to officials, Bengaluru, with its health-conscious population and strong market for organic and value-added products, was described as having the potential to emerge as a global hub for processed and value-added agricultural produce.
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Environment ministry endorses names of 10-member expert committee set up to define Aravalli hills
New Delhi (PTI): The Union Environment Ministry has told the Supreme Court that it has no objection with the Central Empowered Committee's proposed 10-member high-powered expert committee which has been tasked to come up with a uniform definition for the Aravalli hills and ranges.
In an affidavit filed before the top court, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has endorsed the names suggested for the high-powered expert committee comprising in-service and retired bureaucrats associated with the Forest Survey of India (FSI), Geological Survey of India (GSI) and Survey of India, along with academicians.
"The MoEFCC respectfully submits that it has no objection if this court as the aforesaid suggested names for the constitution of the proposed High Powered Committee. It is further submitted that the Ministry does not have any additional names to propose at this stage for inclusion in the said committee," the affidavit said.
The committee is proposed to be headed by Kanchan Devi, the current director general of the Indian Council of Forestry Research & Education.
The MoEF, in its affidavit, said the aspects relating to the Aravalli Hills and Ranges require a comprehensive and analytical examination, including stakeholder consultation, by a group of domain experts in the relevant fields.
The CEC in its report to the apex court said Devi, a 1991 Indian Forest Service officer from the Madhya Pradesh cadre, has over three decades of experience in forestry education and research, wildlife and forest policy, and institutional leadership.
The other members include Subhash Ashutosh, former director general of FSI,
former GSI director Rajendra Kumar Sharma, climate and energy policy expert Tejal Kanitkar, senior academician and life sciences researcher Jaya Parkash Yadav, senior geographer and scholar Tejbir Singh Rana, former additional surveyor general of India SV Singh, former Gujarat principal chief conservator of forests CN Pandey, and former Nagaland PCCF Dharmendra Prakash.
The CEC also recommended names of RN Mishra, a noted author and Vijay Dhasmana, an ecological restoration practitioner and conservationist.
On February 26, the top court had asked the environment ministry and other stakeholders to suggest names of domain experts for the panel which would define the Aravalli hills and ranges, and observed that only lawful mining would be allowed in the region.
The top court, on December 29, took note of the outcry over the new definition of the Aravallis and kept in abeyance its November 20 directions that accepted a uniform definition of these hills and ranges. It had also stalled all mining activities.
It remarked that there was a need to resolve "critical ambiguities", including whether the criteria of 100-metre elevation and the 500-metre gap between hills would strip a significant portion of the range of environmental protection.
