Bihar a global makhana hub, time for youth to lead: Shivraj Chouhan

Union Minister for Agriculture, Farmers’ Welfare, and Rural Development, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, appealed to Bihar’s youth to launch startups in the makhana (fox nut) sector and assured full support from the Central Government.

Addressing farmers and entrepreneurs at the Makhana Mahotsav 2025 held in Patna on Saturday, Chouhan called makhana an “extraordinary blessing” for the poor and asserted that “Bihar has become a global hub for makhana production”.

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“Our goal is to take makhana from India to dining tables across the world, ensuring a steady rise in farmers’ incomes,” he said.

Chouhan announced that the Central Government has notified the establishment of a Makhana Board to promote research, development, marketing, branding, and promotion of makhana. He added that nearly Rs 475 crore has been sanctioned for modern machinery, new variety development, and processing facilities to boost makhana production and value addition.

Calling makhana an “extraordinary blessing” for the poor, Chouhan said Bihar has now emerged not just as India’s but also the world’s leading centre for makhana production. He noted that the cultivation area, which earlier covered around 3,000 hectares, has now expanded to 35,000–40,000 hectares.

The Union Minister said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently extended a historic gift worth Rs 64,000 crore to the youth, especially those from Bihar. “Bihar is witnessing showers of prosperity and development. The Sun of a developed India is shining brightly on the state’s destiny,” he remarked.

He also referred to the recent hike in the Minimum Support Price (MSP) announced by the Central Government for farmers. He stated that the Centre will procure all the produce of lentils – masoor, urad, and arhar – grown by Bihar’s farmers at MSP.