Bihar can show the way in farm growth: Swaminathan

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It may sound unreal but one of the most backward states in the country, Bihar, has the potential to lead India in the farm sector growth, said National Commission of Farmers' Chairman M S Swaminathan.

"Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal, Assam have huge untapped potential. And if efforts are made Bihar will lead them," Swaminathan told PTI.

"Bihar and other states of Eastern India are sleeping giants and you only need to wake them up," he added.

To drive home his point, he even invoked Ramayana and said, "The myth about Seeta that Janak found her while ploughing the field itself suggests the fertility of this land and you know that mythical land Janakpuri is in Bihar."

The architect of Green Revolution said, "I call these states fertile crescent of India which have every potential to become the new grainary of India."

His comments come on the backdrop of Finance Minister P Chidambaram saying that the government will take all steps to to ensure 4 per cent farm growh for 10-20 years.

However, the advance estimates put out by the Central Statistical Orgnanisation has projected a moderation in economic growth to 8.7 per cent for the current fiscal on lower growth in agriculture.

According to CSO's, farm sector is estimated to to