Strategic Agriculture Partnership to Make State a Global Seed Hub
Chandigarh, December 22
Punjab is poised to position itself as a global seed capital through a new strategic partnership with Israel that seeks to integrate advanced agricultural technologies, officials said on Monday.
The proposal was discussed during a high-level meeting between Punjab Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian and Fares Saeb, Minister and Deputy Head of Mission at the Embassy of Israel, at Punjab Bhawan.
Khudian said the collaboration will span four focus areas — exporting food grain seeds to Israel, academic exchanges between Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), Ludhiana and Israeli institutions, exchanging citrus stocks, and adopting cutting-edge water management systems.
A key element of the discussions centered on introducing Israel’s precision ‘N-Drip’ irrigation technology, which can save up to 70 percent of water and substantially reduce energy use. Punjab also plans to explore Israeli expertise in treating and utilizing sewage and village pond water for irrigation — a system under which Israel reuses about 95 percent of its treated wastewater in agriculture.Calling the alliance a “visionary leap” for Punjab’s farming community, Mr. Khudian said, “Merging Israeli innovation with our agricultural strength, we aim to secure water resources, boost farmer profitability, and position Punjab as a leader in seed production and sustainable practices globally.”
Mr. Saeb welcomed the initiative and expressed Israel’s interest in importing food grain seeds from Punjab. He also invited a high-level delegation from the state to strengthen cooperation in agricultural research, water reuse, and technology transfer.He further noted that direct flight service between Delhi and Israel — reducing travel time to about six hours — would commence in January 2026, enhancing connectivity for business and research exchange.
Senior officials, including Secretary Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Arshdeep Singh Thind, MD Punjab Agro Hargunjit Kaur, Special Secretary Agriculture Baldeep Kaur, and Director Agriculture Jaswant Singh, were also present at the meeting.
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