From limiting the Rythu Bharosa financial assistance to farmers with 10 acres of agricultural land to extending the benefit to all small and marginal farmers, suggestions poured in from the participants of a consultative workshop on Rythu Bharosa held in Adilabad district’s Utnoor on Thursday.
Deputy Chief Minister and chairman of the cabinet sub-committee on Rythu Bharosa Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka chaired the workshop, the second such event in the State.
The consultative meetings are aimed at eliciting suggestions from farmers and other stakeholders to formulate the modalities for implementing the scheme after tabling a report for discussion in the upcoming budget session of the Assembly.
Minister for Agriculture Tummala Nageswara Rao, Minister for Revenue Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy, Minister for Panchayat Raj Danasari Anasuya (Seethakka) and a host of elected representatives from all over the former composite Adilabad district took part in the workshop.
An Adivasi farmer, Mesram Jangu, said most of them were dependent on rain-fed agriculture for their livelihood in the tribal majority district. He said they were struggling to make ends meet owing to high input cost, the vagaries of nature and poor returns.
He sought Rythu Bharosa investment support of ₹15,000 an acre, coupled with crop insurance and remunerative price for agricultural produce, to all eligible farmers to make agriculture economically sustainable.
Another farmer insisted that income tax payers be excluded from the scheme and that investment support should be extended to only cultivable lands, including those cultivated by tenant farmers. He further opined that real estate ventures and fallow lands should be excluded from the ambit of the scheme.
“This is imperative to use public money prudently for the intended purpose and avoid a huge burden on the State ex-chequer, he noted.
BRS MLA from Asifabad Kova Laxmi said former Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao endeared himself to farmers by implementing Rythu Bandhu scheme. The scheme should be implemented without any restrictions, she added.
BJP MLA from Adilabad Payal Shankar suggested that the State government implement the Fasal Bhima Yojana and pay the premium on behalf of farmers to ensure them succour in times of crop loss owing to natural calamities.
The Deputy Chief Minister reiterated that the Congress government was firm in its resolve to implement Rythu Bharosa in tune with the aspirations of farmers based on public opinion.
He said he shared a special bond with Adilabad, the tribal majority district, where he had began his State-wide “People’s march” as the Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader in March 2023 to highlight people’s issues during the previous BRS government’s tenure.
Published – July 11, 2024 08:13 pm IST
