LUCKNOW, April 9 -- Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday said Uttar Pradesh must transform agriculture from "production to productivity, productivity to profitability and profitability to prosperity," asserting that India's vision of becoming a developed and self-reliant nation can be realised only when farmers become prosperous. Inaugurating the '6th Uttar Pradesh Agricultural Science Congress-2026' here, the chief minister outlined a broad roadmap for modernising the farm sector through the convergence of technology, traditional practices and policy reforms, while calling for agriculture to be made profitable and sustainable rather than merely production-oriented. "Now the time has come to move beyond the 'lab to land' approach. Land itself must become the lab, where farmers and scientists work together and fields become centres of innovation," Adityanath said. Highlighting Uttar Pradesh's agricultural significance, the chief minister said the state is house to 16-17% of India's population and only 11% of its cultivable land, yet contributes around 21% of the country's foodgrain production. He added that the state's agricultural growth rate has risen from 8% to nearly 18%. The chief minister stressed that global disruptions in supply chains, volatility in fertiliser prices and uncertainty in petroleum availability have underlined the strategic importance of agricultural self-reliance and food security. Adityanath advocated greater use of modern technologies such as artificial intelligence, Internet of Things, drones, satellite monitoring and biotechnology in farming, saying these tools can improve crop forecasting, disease detection, irrigation efficiency and climate resilience. Pitching for natural farming, he said it offers a long-term solution by reducing input costs while preserving soil health and ecological balance. The chief minister said digital agriculture platforms enable farmers to access real-time information on markets, prices and weather, while digital soil health cards help them assess land quality on mobile phones. Referring to reforms in the sugarcane sector, Adityanath said 107 of the state's 122 sugar mills are now making payments to farmers within six to seven days, compared to years-long delays earlier. Over Rs.3.15 lakh crore in cane dues have been paid through direct benefit transfer (DBT) and Uttar Pradesh contributed around 55% of India's sugarcane production while ranking first in ethanol output, he pointed out. He added that irrigation coverage in the state has reached 85-86%, with projects such as the Saryu Canal National Project extending irrigation to 14 lakh hectares. Without naming previous governments, Adityanath said agriculture before 2017 was marked by disorder, weak procurement systems and delayed cane payments, but claimed his government restored farmers' trust through MSP procurement, DBT-based payments and technology-driven reforms. He said the three-day congress should produce actionable outcomes rather than remain confined to deliberations, adding that real agricultural transformation would require coordinated efforts among farmers, scientists, the government and markets. Agriculture minister Surya Pratap Shahi and senior agricultural scientists and officials were present at the event.....