Bhubaneswar, 3/5: Chief Minister Shri Naveen Patnaik today distributed aid to the farmers of the state on the occasion of Akshay Tritiya and Farmer’s Day. Apart from Jharsuguda, about Rs 800 crore has been disbursed directly to the bank accounts of about 4 million small and marginal farmers in the state. On the occasion, the Chief Minister advised the farmers to invest this money in farming and improve their agriculture.
“Farmers are the mainstay of our economy,” he said during a video conference. “Our farmers have played an important role in food security not only in Odisha but across the country and have brought glory to Odisha.” The Chief Minister thanked the farmers.
“Agriculture development and farmers’ welfare are the most important programs of the state government,” he said.
Eight new agricultural development programs were launched on the occasion. With the launch of the Rejuvenating Watershed for Agricultural Resilience through Innovative Development program, the Millet Mission and the Special Program for the Promotion of Integrated Farming are being launched.
While the Panas Mission has provided Rs 97 crore to the Panas farmers in 9 districts, the Rewards scheme has provided Rs 500 crore to increase the productivity of the farmland through a watershed program in a scientific manner. Similarly, the Odisha Millet Mission has set aside Rs 2,808 crore for farmers in 182 blocks of 19 districts, while Rs 239 crore has been earmarked for the special program to promote integrated agriculture to 1.8 lakh farming families in 8 districts. Rs 3644 crore will be spent on these four schemes.
“We attach great importance to investment in agriculture,” he said. “We will continue to work to make agriculture a lucrative profession,” he said.
On this occasion, the Chief Minister inaugurated the new ‘Krishak Odisha’ portal for farmers. Farmers can get involved and update their data to get the services and advice they need. He also launched the Go-Sugam portal for farmers and agricultural entrepreneurs. This is the first single Windows platform for farmers in the country.
A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was also signed between the International Food Policy Research Institute and the state Department of Agriculture to formulate a realistic policy to increase farmers’ incomes in agriculture and allied sectors. The Chief Minister also unveiled a guide to farmers’ organizations to empower farmers.
Agriculture Minister Shri Arun Sahu said that despite the many natural disasters, the Chief Minister
Today, Odisha has taken the lead in agriculture due to its vision and strong leadership. “Women are being given priority in agriculture.” He highlighted the various initiatives of the state government in agriculture.
At the event, Nirmal Nayak, a farmer from Kalahandi district, Baid Nayak from Balasore and Menaka Bhoi, a farmer from Sundargarh district, shared their experiences on how their farming activities have improved due to the major Kalia scheme. They can easily buy and cultivate fertilizers, seeds, etc. for Kalia help. They thanked the Chief Minister for this and said, “May Lord Jagannath bless you.”
The event featured a video of the new scheme and the application of digital technology in agriculture.
Mr. Sanjeev Chopra, Additional Chief Secretary, Department of Agriculture and Farmer Empowerment, delivered the welcome address. The Special Secretary of the Department of Agriculture offered his thanks.
District governors and farmers were present in various districts.