New Delhi, Mar 6 (IANS): There is a need to work in a planned manner, moving beyond traditional agriculture, as well as making full use of technology from lab to land, said Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Monday.

Tomar said that India has made a lot of progress in the agriculture sector, but there are many challenges, and there is a need to identify them and working towards their solution, so that the agriculture sector plays a bigger role in strengthening the country's economy.

"There should be more discussion in this direction. There is a need to work in a planned manner, moving beyond traditional agriculture, as well as making full use of technology from lab to land. Scientists associated with ICAR have done a lot of remarkable research, which is useful for the country and the world today," Tomar said.

The minister was speaking at a conference of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and its affiliated institutes, agricultural universities and industries organised in Delhi on Monday.

Officials said that through the conference, ICAR aims to work with organisations from the industry, research and academia that are interested in ICAR's technologies, so that while achieving mutual benefits, the tie ups can widely benefit the country including the agriculture sector in the long run.