Jharkhand minister for agriculture and animal husbandry Mathura Prasad Mahato said here today (on Saturday) that his department would seek the help of NGOs in the state in implementing government projects like diary farming which aimed at bettering the financial condition of farmers.
Mahato, who inaugurated here today (on Saturday) the 18th Gram Shree Mela, said that from the state budget allocation of Rs 260 crore for 20010-11 for agriculture, the government was in the process of chalking out the diary farming plan for farmers for making them financially sound.
Another Rs 40 crore stands allocated towards animal husbandry in the state budget passed recently. As most land under agriculture was being done on single-crop land for want of irrigation facility, Mahato said the government would, as an irrigation measure, help small and marginal farmers by way of digging up wells for them. Asked if he would do away with the agricultural marketing yards (bazaar samitis) in the state as was being demanded by different chambers of commerce in the state, Mahato said instead of scrapping the agricultural marketing yards (bazaar samitis) they would be strengthened and the existing loopholes rectified.
Mahato said it was only Bihar which had scrapped agricultural marketing yards (bazaar samitis) while all other neighbouring states like West Bengal, Orissa, Chhattisgarh were successfully running such agricultural marketing yards.
Chambers of commerce & trade organizations across Jharkhand at the call of the Ranchi-based Federation of Jharkhand Chamber of Commerce & Industry have threatened to step up agitation for scrapping agricultural marketing yards in the state as, apart from being alleged dens of corruption, they were, with the imposition of a 2% levy by the state, making the state?s agricultural produce costly.
The FJCCI has threatened that in case the government did not abolish agricultural marketing yards in the state by March 20, 2010, members of all the chambers of commerce and trade bodies in Jharkhand would intensify the agitation by going over to Ranchi on March 21.
Earlier, speaking at the inauguration of the 18th Gram Shree Mela being hosted here from today (Saturday) by Tata Steel and sponsored by the Council for Advancement of People?s Action and Rural Technology (Capart), the Jharkhand agriculture & animal husbandry minister observed that over the years there had been a ?fall? in the activities of the Tata Steel Rural Development Society (TSRDS) ?which cannot be denied?.
?Though 150 stalls have been put up this time at the (18th) Gram Shree mela, I would like to review and learn whether over the years the farmer was in any way feeling motivated by all this,? said the minister, adding that his ministry was not for organizing such ?melas? per se but wanted to strengthen the farmers? financial condition.