The Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacted with farmers across the country, through video bridge. Over 2 lakh Common Service Centres (CSC) and 600 Krishim Vigyan Kendras (KVK) were connected through the video dialogue. This is the seventh interaction in the series by the Prime Minister through video conference with various beneficiaries of Government schemes.
Expressing happiness in interacting with farmers from over 600 districts, Prime Minister said that farmers are the ‘Annadatas’ (food providers) of our nation. He said that the entire credit for nation’s food security should go to the farmers.
Prime Minister’s interaction with the farmers covered wide range of agricultural and allied sectors like Organic Farming, Blue Revolution, Animal Husbandry, Horticulture, Floriculture etc.
Outlining his vision for farmers overall welfare in the country, Prime Minister said that government is working towards doubling the farmer’s income by 2022 and to provide farmers maximum price of their produce. He added that the effort is to ensure that farmers receive help during all steps of farming, from preparation of crops to its sales. He emphasized that Government is keen on ensuring minimal cost of raw material, providing fair value for the produce, stopping wastage of the produce and ensuring alternate sources of income for the farmers.
He said that the Government is committed that farmers should feel that from ‘Beej Se Bazaar’ (Seed to Market), how various initiatives helped the farmers to improve traditional farming.
During the interaction, Prime Minister expressed delight in the collective strength displayed by the farmers through the formation of Farmer Producer Group and FPO (Farmer Producer Organisation), enabling them to get agricultural inputs at low cost and marketing their produce effectively. In the past 4 years, 517 Farmer Producer Organizations have been created and income tax exemption has been granted to Farmer Producer Companies, to encourage cooperatives amongst farmers.
