Rajya Sabha passes Bill to declare 2 food technology institutes as national ones

The Bill makes the National Institute of Food Technology Entrepreneurship and Management, Kundli, and the Indian Institute of Food Processing Technology, Thanjavur, national institutes.

The Rajya Sabha has approved the Bill that declares two food technology institutes at Kundli in Haryana and Thanjavur in Tamil Nadu as the National Institutes of Food Technology, Entrepreneurship and Management.

The Bill makes the National Institute of Food Technology Entrepreneurship and Management, Kundli, and the Indian Institute of Food Processing Technology, Thanjavur, national institutes. Several members of Parliament such as Vishambhar Prasad Nishad applauded the decision and requested that more such institutions be established.

While addressing the members' doubts on the implementation of the reservation policy in these institutions, Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar said it will apply to these institutions.

He also assured that people working in food technology will have representation in these institutes.

“This Bill was introduced in the Rajya Sabha in February 2019. Thereafter it was referred to the Standing Committee. There were certain amendments there that were approved by the Cabinet. Now it again came for discussion in the House," he said.

Tomar also said that most members have submitted proposals and expressed their satisfaction with the Bill. He said India is facing tremendous challenges in food storage, cold chain and processing. Therefore, it is important to introduce a technology to avoid wastage of farm produce.

The law will also create jobs and turn farmers into entrepreneurs. So far, 444 lakh jobs have been created under the Kisan SAMPADA Yojana, and 147 lakh farmers have benefited from this scheme, the minister said.

He said such institutes should also be given the freedom to make decisions and collaborate with other world-class institutions which will make them at par with the IIMs and IITs.

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