NEW DELHI: It was decided at a meeting held on Thursday at the Agriculture Ministry to draught a comprehensive action plan for enhancing sunflower production and expanding its area along the lines of pulses, oilseeds, and the National Oil Palm Mission.

During today's meeting, the ministry had in-depth discussions with state governments and field experts, amid the global market's uncertainty induced by the Ukraine-Russia conflict.

Sunflower is an important oilseed crop grown mostly in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Punjab, and Haryana. The panel also looked at the potential of sunflower growing in areas like Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Odisha, and Chhattisgarh.

"In India, sunflower cultivation and production are encouraged across the country. After examining the ideas of the states and experts, a detailed action plan would be produced in this regard." Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Narendra Singh Tomar said, sunflower would be pushed in a coordinated manner, similar to how pulses-oilseeds and the National Oil Palm Mission have been launched in the country. Tomar stated that the roadmap would be developed by a subcommittee comprised of representatives from all of the relevant state governments and stakeholders.

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