Central government prepares new scheme to increase farmers' income

New delhi date. May 2, 2020, Saturday

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday held discussions with ministers and senior officials on reforms in the agricultural sector following the announcement of the third phase of lockdown amid the corona virus epidemic. The meeting discussed agriculture marketing, providing institutional loans to farmers and lifting restrictions on the agricultural sector based on legal provisions. The share of agriculture in India's GDP is about 12% and it is the livelihood of half of the country.

During the lockdown, the government has insisted on continuing operations in the agricultural sector. Corona virus will not have much impact on the agricultural sector in the current financial year as compared to other sectors. The government said it was considering the advantages and disadvantages of bio-technology in crops as well as increasing productivity and reducing input costs. The meeting also discussed appropriate reforms for the rapid development of the agricultural sector along with the strategic ecosystem in the current marketing.

The government said in a statement that strengthening infrastructure in the agriculture sector, special Kisan credit cards under the PM-Kisan Sanman Nidhi Yojana and better inter-state movement of agricultural products were also discussed. Consideration was also given to developing the e-name i.e. National Agriculture Market into a 'Platform of Platform' and enabling it for e-commerce.

The meeting, chaired by PM Modi, considered developing a uniform statutory framework to provide adequate capital and technology for farmers to find new ways. The challenges of Model Agriculture Land Leasing Act, 2013 and protection of interests of small and marginal farmers were also discussed. Prime Minister Modi emphasized on the use of technology for farmers and making them more competitive in the global value chain. The meeting decided to strengthen the FPO.