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Chhattisgarh govt paid ₹1,522 crore to farmers on Rajiv Gandhi's birth anniversary
Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel, speaking on the occasion, said that his government has adopted the vision of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi to "eradicate poverty and build a self-reliant India" in Chhattisgarh.
In what comes as a boost to farmers in Chhattisgarh, the Bhupesh Baghel-led government has made a payment of ₹1,522 crore to the bank accounts of about 21 lakh farmers under the Rajiv Gandhi Kisan Nyay Yojana. According to a government release, the amount was transferred to the farmers on Friday on the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi. The Chattisgarh government also transferred an amount of ₹3.49 crore online for the cow dung purchased from cattle rearers and to the Gauthan committees and women self-help groups under the GodhanNyay Yojana.
Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel, speaking on the occasion, said that his government has adopted the vision of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi to "eradicate poverty and build a self-reliant India" in Chhattisgarh. Baghel said that the state government, following on the path shown by Gandhi, has launched several welfare programs and schemes for all sections of the people -- including the poor, the farmers, and the tribals. The 'Rajiv Gandhi Kisan Nyay Yojana' was started to provide remunerative prices to the farmers for their produce, he said.
Moreover, the Chhattisgarh government has also expanded the scope of this scheme from the Kharif season this year to include paddy, along with other Kharif crops. In addition to this, the 'Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Bhoomheen Krishi Mazdoor Nyay Yojana' is being started to provide financial help to landless agricultural laborers residing in the rural areas of Chhattisgarh.
Under this scheme, ₹6,000 will be provided annually to such families of rural areas who do not have agricultural land and are associated with MNREGA or agricultural wages.
Under the Rajiv Gandhi Kisan Nyay Yojana, an amount totalling more than ₹5,600 crore in the financial year 2020-21 is being given to about 21 lakh farmers of Chattisgarh in four installments as crop production incentive input assistance to paddy and sugarcane growing farmers. An amount of ₹1,525 crore and 97 lakh has already been paid to the farmers as the first installment in their accounts, the government said. The second installment of ₹1,522 crore and 3 lakh was transferred to the bank accounts of the farmers under the scheme on the birth anniversary of Rajiv Gandhi.
Notably, the Rajiv Gandhi Kisan Nyay Yojana was implemented in 2020 with the objective of providing a fair price to the farmers for their produce, promoting the productivity of Kharif crops and crop diversification, but with a retrospective effect, its benefits beginning from the Kharif marketing year. In the 2019-20 financial session, a provision was made to give the amount to the farmers selling paddy on support price, and ₹5,628 crore was provided in this regard.
This year as well, the process of giving input assistance to farmers under this scheme is going on, the Chhattisgarh government said. According to the official release, it is to this end that the amount of ₹1,522 crore and 3 lakh was transferred to paddy and sugarcane farmers as the second installment on August 20.
With the help of the Rajiv Gandhi Kisan Nyay Yojana, agriculture has been encouraged in Chattisgarh, the state government said. In the past two and a half years, the number of farmers has increased from 15 lakh to 22 lakh and the area under paddy cultivation has increased from 22 lakh hectares to more than 27 lakh hectares. According to the government, people who have turned away from agriculture have also started joining agriculture again.
Under the 'GodhanNyay' scheme of the Chhattisgarh government, ₹1 crore was provided to cattle owners and villagers on August 20 as the 26th installment for the plan. Chief minister Bhupesh Baghel also authorised the payment of ₹1 crore 3 lakhs as a dividend to the self-help groups and Gauthan committees. It is worth mentioning here that under the GodhanNyay Yojana, which started in the state from July 20 last year, cow dung worth ₹99 crore and 8 lakh has so far been purchased.
This amount is mostly contributed by cow dung sellers, cattle farmers, villagers, people belonging to backward classes, scheduled castes, and tribes, the government said. Around 45 per cent of the benefitted cow dung sellers are women, the release noted, adding that more than 78 thousand people among the beneficiaries belong to landless families. Of the amount directly transferred to the bank accounts so far, ₹18 crore and 49 lakh have been paid to self-help groups associated with Gauthans, and ₹26 crore 75 lakhs have been paid to Gauthan committees.
