A special meeting of the Planning Commission has been convened on May 29 to draft and finalise the Union’s new policy on agriculture.
Meet being held in backdrop of farmer suicides and the sector becoming unviable
A special meeting of the Planning Commission has been convened on May 29 to draft and finalise the Union’s new policy on agriculture, which is going through its worst phase, said Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar. “This is the first time that the Planning Commission is holding a special meeting for one particular sector. It is being done as per the instructions of the PM Manmohan Singh,” said Pawar.
Earlier the Agriculture Minister had constituted six sub-committees to study the status, problems and suggest corrective measures for farming, irrigation and marketing of farm produce. These sub-committees are headed by six chief ministers, including Vilasrao Deshmukh.
These panels will recommend corrective measures for minimum support prices, buffer stock of farm produce to be maintained and the changes in the export and import duties levied on the farm produce. “The meeting will focus on the creation of pro-farmer marketing systems, that will pass on the benefits to farmers and eliminate the involvement of middlemen to a great extent,” Pawar said.
This is important against the background of farming becoming unviable and a drastic rise in the number of farmers’ suicides. The Centre has already hiked agriculture credit from previous year’s Rs86,000 crore to Rs1,85,000 crore. Expressing satisfaction on the hiked agricultural debt, Pawar said: “Even this was not adequate, since the hike benefits only 40 per cent of the farmers. Efforts are being made to ensure that it is available to farmers.”
Talking about the lowered interest rate on agricultural credit, he said earlier these loans were given to farmers at 12%, which has been lowered to 7%, while in Maharashtra it’s been lowered to six per cent. Pawar stated that capital expenditure had been hiked by more than 40 per cent. About the sugarcane sector, which has registered a record yield, the Agriculture Minister said, “The government will soon finalise the quantity of sugar to be stored, exported and converted into ethanol.”
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}