New Delhi, May 28, 2014: Smt. Harsimrat Kaur Badal today took over as the Union Minister for Food Processing Industries.
Smt. Badal represents Bathinda constituency in Punjab in the newly constituted 16th Lok Sabha.
This is Smt. Badal’s second term as Member of Parliament. She has been member of many parliamentary committees. She has also been active in movements to save girl child and women empowerment.
Speaking to media after taking over as Minister, She said, “My mission will be to find new and innovative ways to reduce the post harvest losses by facilitating efficient storage & transportation as well as finding ways to increase the shelf life of food products while at the same time ensuring that these processed food products are available to the consumers across the country at reasonable prices.
“I would welcome all ideas from farmers, industry, consumers and other stake holders to put our country at par with the top countries in the area of food processing. My prime interest remains to increase the income of farmers while at the same time ensuring the process to remain affordable for all consumers.
“The farmers of this country, especially the farmers of my home state, Punjab, have been at the forefront in providing Food Security to the nation. Now, their incomes are stagnant. The time has come to give boost to the income of our farmers through innovative value additions to the farm produce.”
