Ambassador of Italy attended event
Diplomat Correspondent
New Delhi, DD: The 9th International Exhibition and Conference on Agri-Machinery, Equipment and Agri-tech Solutions ‘EIMA Agrimach India 2025’ jointly organized by FICCI and Italian agriculture industry body FederUnacoma in association with Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India, today concluded with a call on focusing on green-fuel based agri machinery in the future.
Held at IARI ground, PUSA in New Delhi from November 27-29, 2025, the exhibition witnessed participation of about 20,000 farmers with major draw from Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Odisha; more than 4000 domestic dealers and distributors, 180+ domestic and foreign companies; and 100+ foreign buyers from Algeria, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Kenya, Oman, Malaysia, Morocco, Nigeria, Uganda, Vietnam, Zimbabwe, South Korea and Thailand. While Italy was Partnering country for the exhibition, Netherland, Japan, USA and Poland also participated in the exhibition.
The exhibition showcased a wide-range of agri machineries, which can be extremely beneficial for farmers of our country. Besides, the event provided the excellent opportunities to both Indian and overseas player catering to the entire value chain of agriculture sector.
Delivering a keynote address during the inaugural session, Dr. Devesh Chaturvedi, Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare requested industry to play a pivotal role in shaping Indian agriculture sector’s vision of 2047 by prioritising green-fuel based mechanisation and reduce the drudgery of women farmers by making gender-neutral farm equipment to reduce workload.
“Over the next 5–10 years, we should shift our technologies towards green fuels—whether electrically operated tractors or machines running on CBG (compressed biogas) available for rural CBG plants. This transition will bring down both maintenance and operational costs for farmers. Our schemes will increasingly prioritize green-fuel-based technologies. I would urge our Italian industry counterparts to collaborate in this area,” he said during his inaugural address.
Terming women farmers vital for achieving the Vision 2047, the Secretary drew attention of industry towards gender budgeting and exhorted them to focus on production of gender-friendly equipment.
He further stated that the United Nations has declared 2026 as the International Year of Women Farmers. Therefore, equipment must be designed to reduce the drudgery of women. “Often policy makers assume that ‘gender budgeting’ simply means giving ownership of machinery to women but that alone does not reduce drudgery. “Most difficult agricultural tasks are performed by women, and hence we need more gender-friendly equipment, whether manual or motorized, that genuinely reduces their workload,” emphasized Dr Chatuvedi.
Antonio Bartoli, Ambassador of Italy in India hoped to have an agriculture Attache in Italian Embassy in India soon to boost bilateral cooperation in agriculture field between both countries.
Anbalagan P., Joint Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, who visited the expo on the penultimate day, expressed his satisfaction over achievement of the exhibition and conference and said that participation of large number of farmers along with a major presence of both domestic and foreign companies, dealers, distributors speak volume about the success of the event.
T. R. Kesavan, Chairman, Organizing Committee- EIMA Agrimach India and Board Director and Group President, TAFE underlined the need to promote agriculture as services, as farmer will find it unaffordable to buy a seeder which is used just for couple of days. But seeder as an agriculture service can help. So, we need to create a new area of agriculture as a service. Industry has discussed this with the Ministry of Agriculture, and some progress has happened on this front.
Upbeat over future of India-Italy collaboration in agriculture space, Ms. Simona Rapastella, Director General, FEDERUNACOMA said that as per Italian Trade Agency (ICE) report on India, the sector was worth a total of USD 13.7 billion in 2023 and is expected to grow significantly over the next ten years, reaching USD 31.6 billion in 2033, with an annual growth rate of about 9%.
. Subroto Geed, Co-Chairman, FICCI National Agriculture Committee and President, South Asia, Corteva Agriscience said, “For India to secure its food future, improving productivity is critical. We must start by giving farmers access to the right inputs like high-quality seeds and crop solutions. We need modern practices that reduce drudgery and improve efficiency. Mechanization is a critical part of this transformation, supported by technology and progressive reforms. Together, these steps can build a resilient agricultural system that works for farmers and for the nation.”
FICCI-PwC report ‘Farm Mechanisation: The Path Towards a Future-Ready India’ was also released during the event.
Ms Sabrina Mangialavori, Deputy Trade Commissioner, Italian Trade Agency noted increasing adoption of modern mechanical solutions, such as tillage, sowing, irrigation, crop protection, and threshing by Indian farmers.
The 10th edition of the event is scheduled to be organised in Italy next year,DD
