India's Prime Minister Calls for Innovation in Agriculture

India's Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi met 30 eminent scientists from top institutions across the country to discuss scientific solutions to the country's various problems. Mr. Modi said, "while science is universal, technology must be local," and called for innovations in agriculture that will increase the protein content of staple crops, lower wastage of agricultural produce, and eliminate India's importation of agricultural products. He mentioned that India must add more value to the production of castor seeds, since it has most of the global production of castor seed, and other countries import raw castor seeds from them.

Referring to the critical negotiations in the coming days for the COP21 in November-December, Mr. Modi also asked the scientists to come up with new ideas and concepts so that India can contribute to fight climate change as a global leader. He urged the scientific community to focus on problems faced by the country in the critical areas of energy and water.

For more details, read the news release at website of the Prime Minister, and at the Press Information Bureau website.