"Science and Technology alone can help in triggering another green revolution. It is important to transfer successful technologies developed in laboratories to farms in quick time," said Dr. C Rangarajan, Chairman, Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council.

Launching a slew of programmes at Somangalam for improved productivity in agriculture at the demonstration cum experimental farm of the Agriculture Consultancy Management Foundation, Dr. Rangarajan pointed to the urgent need for improving agriculture growth to 4 per cent pa: "use of science and technology to test soil and correct it for nutrition deficiency, the use of right combination of fertilizers and water management, will help trigger another green revolution," he said.

The renowned economist and former Governor of RBI, referred to the chronic shortage of pulses and to the difficulty in bridging the gap in pulses with imports as pulses are not grown in many countries. He pointed to the success of Gujarat in improving the productivity of groundnut that makes the state account for around 38 per cent of grandnut production.

Dr. Rangarajan launched a few special programmes of ACMF. These included:

• setting up a soil test laboratory in cooperation with Rallis India and Tata Chemicals,
  
  
• inaugurating the More Pulses programme in cooperation with Rallis India
  
  
• launching the farm initiative mechanisation in association with Mahindra & Mahindra and
  
  
• Commissioning a TCS study to develop a software linkage for soil test reports.

FC Kohli (TCS), Chairman-ACMF and S Viswanathan, Managing Trustee, ACMF welcomed and explained the mission of ACMF to improve farm productivity through science, technology and management and to offer education and training for farmers.

Sudhir Shah of M&M explained the salient features of Mahindra's Samriddhi programme under which 50 soil test labs have been set up by Mahindra Tractor dealers to reach around 30,000 farmers: “there has been a 15 per cent increase in productivity; with optimum use of fertilizers and pesticides the cost on inputs had fallen and margins improved,” said Shah. He pointed to the close cooperation of the Samriddhi with ACMF.

K P Geethakrishnan, former finance secretary and S Jambunathan, IAS (retd) from the Maharashtra cadre who spoke stressed the need for achieving improvements in productivity in quick time.

Farmers in and around Somangalam and a cross section of leaders from Chennai, scientists from the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University and officials of the agriculture department attended the function.