Union Minister of State for Power and Heavy Industries Krishan Pal Gurjar said on Saturday that the Centre has launched various programmes for the economic empowerment of farmers and was committed to their welfare.
He was speaking at an interaction programme with farmers at Bharati Nagar in Mandya district. The Minister said that there have been changes in the crop insurance schemes and underlined the salient features of Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana. He said earlier crop insurance benefits could be availed only on 50 per cent of the crop failure but now insurance claims can be made for 33 per cent of crop failure as well.
Mr. Gurjar said that the fertilizer rates have remained constant to ensure that the farmers do not feel the pinch or burdened while the crop insurance premium has been reduced under the PMFBY. ‘’The subsidies due to the farmers are credited to their SB accounts directly without entailing any involvement of middlemen’’, he added.
Delving on the benefits of drip irrigation being encouraged by the Centre, the Minister said it has resulted in water conservation while the farmers are reaping the benefits of higher subsidies. The government was also subsidizing the procurement of agricultural implements and was benefitting the farmers. In the 2022-23 Union Budget, the Centre has earmarked ₹18 lakh crore towards loan waiver..
In another interaction programme with the students, also at Bharati Nagar, the Minister said the youth were an asset to the nation and India had a bright future as the population of the youthwas 58 crore and the government was focussed on creating job opportunities for them.
The objective of the New Education Policy was to make the new generation of youngsters self-reliant and turn them into entrepreneurs, said Mr.Gurjar and added that the thrust on digital learning has opened up opportunities in the field of technical education.
A section of students who interacted with the Minister raised issues related to various Central government schemes. C.P. Yogeshwar and Madhu G. Made Gowda, MLCs, and others were present.
