Assam farmers receive Rs 381 crore under PM Kisan Sanman Nidhi

OUR BUREAU

GUWAHATI/LAKHIMPUR: A total of Rs 381 crore was deposited in the accounts of as many as 17.49 lakh farmers in Assam under the PK Kisan Sanman Nidhi today.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi deposited Rs 20,000 crore for 9.26 crore farmers in the country today.

Keeping in sync with the Prime Minister’s programme, the State Agriculture Department observed the PM Kisan Utsav Divas at Srimanta Sankaradeva Kalakshetra in Guwahati today.

Speaking as the chief guest of the programme, Agriculture Minister Atul Bora said, “Our Chief Minister has been motoring this scheme not to make any eligible farmer of the state deprived of its benefits. The Chief Minister has instructed the district commissioners to monitor this scheme at the district level. The farmers get financial benefits from this scheme because of the DBT (direct bank transfer) mode of payment, which leaves no room for any middlemen to meddle with. The number of beneficiary farmers in this scheme is going up every year.”

Bora said, “Along with the rest of the world, climate change is an ominous signal for the farmers of Assam. We have entrusted Assam Agriculture University (AAU) to conduct research work that can make us able to face the challenge. We are progressing towards the commercialization and mechanisation of agriculture in the state. It has yielded a desired change in the sector in the state. We have fixed MSPs (minimum support prices) for paddy, mustard seeds, etc. We are urging our farmers to lay stress on multiple crops. Only the farmers of a few districts of the state have come forward for multiple farming. We committed to supply seeds to the farmers in time.”

Bora said that the exports of agricultural products, including tea, have been on the rise in Assam. “We exported around agricultural products worth Rs 4,000 crore last year. Our target in the coming two or three years is to double exports. Nowadays, we export lemon, bhoot jalakia, ginger, yellow pumpkin, litchis, improved varieties of rice, red rice, black rice, etc.,” he said.

 In the Lakhimpur district, 83,861 eligible beneficiaries received the 17th installment of the Prime Minister’s Krishak Sanman Nidhi. On this occasion, a meeting was organized at the Lakhimpur District Agriculture Office. The meeting was chaired by District Agriculture Officer Ajit Kumar Borah. Lakhimpur MP Manab Deka attended as the chief guest. The event was also attended by Sub-Divisional Agriculture Officer Manoranjan Patir, District Nodal Officer of the scheme Anjan Loying, Assistant Nodal Officer Baishali Barua, Agricultural Development Officers, and hundreds of farmers.

 Also Read: PM-Kisan Saturation Campaign: Darrang district drive to provide 17th instalment to farmers (sentinelassam.com)

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