New Delhi: In order to address concerns about global food security, India on Tuesday urged G20 countries to implement the '3S' strategy for the agricultural ecosystem, which stands for Smart, Sustainable, and Serve.


Addressing the media on the sidelines of the first G20 Agriculture Deputies' Meeting here, Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said agriculture for India has always been a priority and for the world it has fully come to the fore now, news agency PTI reported.


"Our thinking is we have to adopt 3S strategy for the agriculture ecosystem to make a mark on the world food system," Scindia said.


According to Scindia, the union minister for civil aviation and steel, the 3S approach promotes "smart" and "sustainable" agriculture that should "serve" everyone.


For smart agriculture, Scindia emphasised the use of drones and other modern technology to increase agricultural productivity.


For sustainable agriculture, farmers should focus on achieving higher yields, use better inputs besides focusing on advanced technologies and marketing, he added.


He further stated that in the previous eight years, India's foodgrain output has increased from 265 million tonne to 315 million tonne. The budgetary outlay for the farm sector has been increased by four-and-half times to USD 10.5 billion (around Rs 86,700 crore) in the last eight years.


Stating that India has made significant progress in agriculture, the minister said it is the top nation in the world in milk production, second in vegetables and fruits, and third in foodgrains production.


Scindia also mentioned that his home state Madhya Pradesh too has made significant progress in the farm sector and is a major producer of soya and garlic.


In the last 18 years, the state's foodgrains output increased almost 4 times to 629 lakh tonne from 165 lakh tonnes. Irrigation has improved by 50 per cent in the state, he said.


"Based on the outcome of the discussion, India and G-20 nations will provide a new road map for agriculture to the world," he added.


The first Agriculture Deputies Meeting of the Agriculture Working Group (AWG) under India's G20 presidency is being held here from February 13-15.


The next meetings of G20 AWG are likely to be held in Chandigarh, Varanasi, and Hyderabad. 


(With inputs from PTI)