Australian High Commissioner to India Philip Green met state agriculture minister Sobhandeb Chattopadhyay at Nabanna yesterday and discussed possibilities for collaboration in the agriculture sector between the two countries.

Mr Green was accompanied by Mr Hugh Boylan, consul general and Mr Kevin Goh, deputy consul general from the Australian Consulate General in Kolkata. Senior officials of the state agriculture department also attended the meeting.

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Different aspects and possibilities for economic cooperation in the agriculture sector were discussed in light of the free trade agreement finalized between the two countries in the recent past. Already, work on cooperation and technological collaboration in the agri-sector has been initiated by the Australian high commission in other states. Advantages and rich agro-resources of our state were sited to the delegation and the possibility of further technical collaboration was explored.

The already ongoing collaborative projects of the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) with Uttar Banga Krishi Viswavidyalaya in Cooch Behar and Malda were discussed. It involves sustainable farming technology, gender equality, increased productivity, better water use efficiency, diversified farming with animal resource development, inter cropping, bridging knowledge gaps with appropriate mechanization, household and livestock nutrition leading to an increase in farm income. In this context, it was stated that such programmes must improve the lives of the hardworking farmers. In view of this, recent sustainable agriculture and climate resilient farming techniques were emphasized.