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♤ With a 17.2 per cent contribution to the gross domestic product (GDP), agriculture provides livelihood support to about two-thirds of country’s population.
♤ The sector provides employment to 56.7 per cent of country’s work force and is the single largest private sector occupation.
♤ Agriculture accounts for about 14.7 per cent of the total export earnings and provides raw material to a large number of Industries (textiles, silk, sugar, rice, flour mills, milk products).
♤ The agriculture sector acts as a bulwark in maintaining food security and, in the process, national security as well.
♤ The allied sectors like horticulture, animal husbandry, dairy and fisheries, have an important role in improving the overall economic conditions and health and nutrition of the rural masses.