Question: Recently, Shri Radha Mohan Singh, the Union Minister for Agriculture & Farmers Welfare has sent a proposal to United Nations for declaring which of the following year as ‘International Year of Millets’?
(a) 2021
(b) 2018
(c) 2019
(d) 2020
Ans: (b)
Related facts:
- On November 22, 2017, Shri Radha Mohan Singh, the Union Minister for Agriculture & Farmers Welfare has sent a proposal to United Nations for declaring the year 2018 as ‘International Year of Millets’.
- It is noteworthy that Millet is a common term to categorize small-seeded grasses.
- It is often termed nutri-cereals or dryland-cereals, and includes sorghum, pearl millet, ragi, small millet, foxtail millet, proso millet, barnyard millet, kodo millet and other millets.
- An important staple cereal crop for millions of small holder dryland farmers across sub-saharan Africa and Asia, millets offer nutrition, resilience, income and livelihood for farmers even in difficult times.
- Millets can provide nutritional security and act as a shield against nutritional deficiency, especially among children and women.
- The anaemia (iron deficiency), B-complex vitamin deficiency, pellagra (niacin deficiency) can be effectively tackled with intake of less expensive but nutritionally rich food grains like millets.
- The proposal, if agreed, will raise awareness about millets among consumers, policy makers, industry and R&D sector.
Reference:
http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=173750