MILLETS PRODUCTION FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE AND FOOD SECURITY

Millet is grain that is mainly consumed in many parts of the world and is a main food in Africa and Asia. According to the World Food Programme, there are an estimated 1.2 billion people who consume millet as part of their diet. The majority of the millet production in the world is in Africa, followed by Asia Millets have been identify by various names, such as “Mota Annaj,” “Nutri-cereals,” “coarse cereals,” and “cereals of the poor”. The latest addition to this list of names is “Shree Ann—the mother of all grains,” coined by the Finance Minister of India, Mrs. Nirmala Sithraman, during her budget speech on February 1, 2023, and also announced that the Indian Institute of Millets Research (IIMR) at Hyderabad would be converted to the Centre of Excellence.In Indian millets are a group of nutritiously rich and drought-tolerant plants and are mostly found in the arid and semiarid regions of India. They are small seeded grass belonging to the botanical family “Poaceae ” and are an important source of food and fodder for millions of resource-poor farmers and play an important role in the economic security of India. In 2018, India declared millets as “Nutri-cereals” and introduced them in “Poshan Abhiyaan” in an effort to alleviate malnutrition and micronutrient deficiency among the poor. This emphasis on millets led to increased production (27% growth) of millets in 2021–2022.