Indian farmers are Covid heroes too: Agriculture Minister
If we move away from agriculture, even if we have money, agricultural products will not be available, said Tomar
Source - GoI
Narendra Singh Tomar, the Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, said that the countrymen should respect farmers who have ensured food security in India for decades and helped surmount the Covid pandemic without any food crisis.
Speaking at the India Sustainability Conclave recently, Tomar said that the focus of the government is to improve the income of farmers. “During the previous governments, agriculture did not get the required priority and the attitude towards agricultural development remained subdued, due to which the income of the farmers did not increase and adequate resources were not available to them, but now under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi, farmers are being empowered,” he said.
Highlighting that Rs.6,000 is credited every year into the bank accounts of 11.5 crore farmers from the Prime Minister Kisan Samman Nidhi, Tomar said, “It is the largest programme in the world. So far, more than Rs 2 lakh crore has been given to the farmers, without any pilferage, the entire Rs.6,000 is directly deposited in the bank accounts of farmers.”
The promotion of Agri Startups, new technology like drones, distribution of KCC and Rs.16 lakh crore worth of short-term loans have helped farmers, Tomar added.
Hinting at some sections of the society, especially from the metros, which claim that certain states/cities that contribute more to the Indian economy must get more funds from the central government, Tomar said, “All should shoulder the responsibility, all march step by step, every individual, every sector contribute together in this.”
“Even during the Covid-19 pandemic, the farmers ensured food security as India not only emerged a world leader in food production, but we were also able to supply food grains to the world while 80 crore poor people have also been given free ration by the center.”
“Development does not only mean building roads or houses, but it should bring about positive change in the lives of the most vulnerable sections of the society, only then there is the real development.”
“If we move away from the agriculture sector, even if we have money, agricultural products will not be available…today we have to realise that the agriculture sector in the country is extensive and about 60% of the population is dependent on agriculture and the livelihood of majority of our population is dependent on agriculture, 86% are small farmers, for whom it is necessary to adopt technology into farming, increase production quality at par with global standards and also make it a remunerative avenue.”
Farmers are the biggest strength of our country, he mentioned.
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