Onus on states to implement Centre's pro-farmer schemes: Radha Mohan Singh

HYDERABAD: The onus to speed up the implementation of the Centre's several pro-farmers schemes lays with the state governments, Union Minister Radha Mohan Singh said here today.
"The Centre has launched several schemes to bring down the input cost of farming and improve productivity. Sufficient funds have been given to the state governments in this regard and they have to utilise it in a speedy manner," he said.

"Agriculture is a state subject and it is the state governments' responsibility to implement agricultural schemes. I hope the Telangana government undertakes speedy implementation of Central schemes," the Union Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare Minister said.

"There is no shortage of funds. There is a need for states to spend those speedily. The speed with which the states spend the funds, we will support such states in the same manner," Singh said.

The Centre is stressing on scaling up crop production to increase farmers' income, and funds have been given to the states under 'Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana' to ensure water supply in all farmlands, he said.

"Our aim is to supply water to every field so that farm produce goes up. High yield seeds and planting material are being made available," he said, adding, to bring down the input cost in agriculture sector, the Centre has reduced fertiliser prices and urea is being coated with neem.

"To ensure that farmers get better prices for their produce, Rashtriya Mandis have been set up. Our aim is to digitally connect 585 mandis across the country through e-trading platform," Singh said.

As the weather department has forecast normal monsoon, the government is expecting record production of food grains, the minister said.

On farmers' suicides due to crop failure, he said, "Under the Modi government premium for crop insurance scheme has been brought down and the cap removed. The states need to create awareness about the scheme among farmers."

On distribution of Soil Health Cards, he said the Central government has aimed to cover every farmer under this scheme by March next year, but alleged that some states, including Telangana, is "slow" in distributing these cards.

In the last two years, the Modi government had sanctioned Rs 874 crore under National Disaster Response Fund for Telangana. Rs 1,515 crore has been allocated for 2015-2020, whereas the UPA-2 government during its tenure had released only Rs 153.6 crore, he claimed.