Shashank Shekhar

Ranchi ( Jharkhand) : The Vice President of India M Venkaiah Naidu on August 10, 2019, called for introducing structural reforms in the agricultural sector along with financial assistance schemes like Direct Benefit Transfer to make agriculture profitable and sustainable. Naidu was addressing a gathering after inaugurating Mukhya Mantri Krishi Ashirwad Yojna (MMKAY) of  Jharkhand Government at Ranchi, Jharkhand.

He lauded Jharkhand government for coming up with the scheme and expressed hope that it would go a long way in addressing agricultural distress in the state. Addressing more than 10,000 farmers besides others at Harmu Ground, Ranchi, Naidu asked the farmers to put in their best to get maximum yield from their crops as the state government was trying its best to give maximum support to them.

Earlier, Naidu was received at Ranchi airport by Governor Draupadi Murmu, CM Raghubar Das, Rajya Sabha vice chairman Harivansh besides ministers and officers around 1 pm on August 10.

Under the scheme, all the small and marginal farmers of the state, who have arable land up to a maximum of 5 acres, will be given a grant-in-aid at the rate of Rs 5000 per acre per year, which will also reduce their dependence on loans. This amount would be given in two instalments through Direct Benefit Transfer into the beneficiary’s bank account. This is in addition to PM Kisan Nidhi Yojana under which each small & marginal farmer’s family having combined landholding/ ownership of up to two hectare is paid Rs 6,000 per year, said the Vice President. Naidu opined that Direct Benefit Transfer would eliminate middlemen and ensure that every penny of the financial assistance given by the government reaches the beneficiaries.

The Vice President said that the Government of India has taken a firm resolve to double the income of farmers by 2022. He added that the government was continuously increasing the minimum support price of foodgrains to achieve this objective. Naidu said  that our development would be meaningless until the benefits of progress reached the rural areas and made the lives of the farmers better.

The Vice President also stressed on the need for water conservation and said, “Conservation of natural resources like water is essential. For this, a massive campaign of rainwater conservation should be carried out, which will replenish our ground water.” He cautioned that groundwater levels are continuously falling due to uncontrolled exploitation of groundwater. Due to which the cost of irrigation is increasing. The Vice President also urged the farmers to adopt traditional techniques to support groundwater conservation. Later, Naidu flagged off Kisan Sarthi Rath to all 24 districts of Jharkhand.

The MMKAY scheme, which was incorporated in the state budget for 2019-20, is the first scheme by the state to provide 100 percent settlement through direct benefit transfer and as per State Agriculture Secretary Puja Singhal about 35 lakh farmers of the state shall be getting Rs 3,000 crore into their bank accounts in two instalments.
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