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Niti Aayog member Ramesh Chand has said that agriculture has been a key focus area of development strategy in India, and the country has achieved the highest growth rate of 5 per cent in the farm sector during the seven years from 2016-17 to 2022-23. Chand said that according to the World Bank data, India achieved the highest growth rate in GDP agriculture in the world in the last 10 years.

He pointed out that the share of agriculture in the world GDP has risen from 3.2 per cent in 2006 to 4.3 per cent in recent years. He stated  agricultural growth in the last 15 years has saved many countries from economic collapse.  He said due to the poor effort of industry in pulling the labour force out of agriculture, the onus of remunerative employment for the large workforce still remains on agriculture.

According to him, the recent achievements and opportunities in agriculture are pointing to an even higher role for agriculture in the future development of India and the world. He noted that all these challenges necessitate a fresh appreciation of the role of agriculture in economic and human development and a renewed focus on agriculture at all levels.