Corp to look after farmers’ welfare

Guwahati: Chief minister Tarun Gogoi on Friday declared the current year as being the ‘year of agriculture’ and unveiled the state government’s plans to set up a farmers’ development corporation with an allocation of Rs 1,000 crore, which will used for taking up various farmer-oriented schemes.
Gogoi made these announcements during an interactive session with 100 farmers from different parts of the state at his official residence here.
“My government has all along placed emphasis on the agriculture sector and has taken up many schemes to raise the income of farmers. Ours is an agrarian economy and the development of the state hinges on agriculture and allied sectors. That is why our government has accorded top priority to the agriculture sector and has taken up a slew of schemes towards this end,” he said.
While declaring 2015 as being ‘year of agriculture’, he said the government has put emphasis on farm mechanization. He said farmers have to adopt modern farming to raise agricultural production and boost their income.
Gogoi said the government will provide assistance to farmers who have done exceedingly well in their respective fields and asked the agriculture department to make a list of 100 such farmers.
Speaking on the occasion, agriculture minister Rockybul Hussain said the thrust of his department is on shifting from single to multiple cropping in a year to augment the income of farmers.
Hussain said his department has already initiated the process for timely distribution of potato seeds from October this year.
Listing the achievements on the agriculture front, Hussain added that the state attained self-sufficiency in rice production in 2010 and has done well in production of pulses.
The chief minister released a crop calendar where vital inputs are provided as to what crops must be sowed throughout the year.