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DMK govt in Tamil Nadu fulfills poll promise, presents separate agri budget
MRK Panneerselvam, the minister for agriculture and farmer’s welfare, presented the budget and said that it was in line with the views of farmers and experts, whose opinions were sought before preparing it.
The Tamil Nadu government on Saturday presented an exclusive budget for the agricultural sector in the state assembly. This was the first separate budget for agriculture in the state, which MK Stalin-led Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) had promised in its poll manifesto for the state assembly elections earlier this year.
MRK Panneerselvam, the minister for agriculture and farmer’s welfare, presented the budget and said that it was in line with the views of farmers and experts, whose opinions were sought before preparing it. “The agriculture budget is the aspiration of farmers. It is a dream of nature lovers,” he said.
The minister announced that a sum of ₹34,220.65 crore will be allocated for agriculture and related departments like animal husbandry, fisheries, dairy development, irrigation, rural development, sericulture and forest for the year 2021-22. Also, for providing free of cost electricity to farm pump sets, an amount of ₹4,508.23 crore has been earmarked for the Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO), the state-run electricity entity.
Also read | Climate crisis fund, petrol tax cut part of Tamil Nadu budget
While the previous All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) government had declared the Cauvery delta region as a protected agriculture zone, Panneerselvam proposed to declare the area as an agro-industrial corridor. It was aimed at bringing more prosperity to farmers and farm labourers in the delta region and to promote agro based industries, he added.
Further, he said that in places such as Thanjavur, where rice, pulses, banana and coconut are grown throughout the year, rice and oil mills, coir units and pulse processing units would contribute more to the welfare of farmers and farm workers. These industries are promoted to use agricultural products grown in these regions to produce more value added products, he said
Under the plan named Kalaignarin Anaithu Grama Orunginaintha Velaan Valarchi Thittam (named after former chief minister M Karunanidhi) costing ₹1,245.45 crore, overall agricultural development and self-sufficiency would be ensured in all villages of the state, he said. The plan will be implemented in 2,500 village panchayats in the current year. Moreover, each year, one-fifth of the total 12,524 villages in Tamil Nadu will be identified over the next five years where the scheme will be implemented, the minister said. The major objectives of the scheme include turning fallow lands cultivable, augmenting water resources, installing solar powered pump sets, marketing value added farm produce, adoption of micro-irrigation and ramping up milk production.
The chief minister’s Dry Land Development Mission to increase income of farmers depending on rainfed farming and organic farming development scheme to promote organic farming were also introduced in the budget. Farms under the organic farming scheme will be certified as organic and the necessary inputs would be made available in agricultural extension centres.
Tamil Nadu assembly’s budget session commenced on Friday, when finance minister Palanivel Thiagarajan presented the new government’s maiden budget. Among major announcements, the state tax on petrol was was slashed, which led to a reduction in prie by ₹3 per litre. A separate fund was also announced for climate change adaptation and mitigation activities.
(With PTI input)
