6 hours ago
Rs 5K cr agri loan to push rural eco
Lucknow: The state govt will soon disburse a loan of Rs 5,000 crore at a lesser rate to farmers in a bid to give impetus to the rural economy. Under this, an interest subsidy of 3% will be given by both the Central and state govts.
A state govt spokesperson said that the focus is now on turning farming into a profitable business, not just a livelihood. "Under this, state-of-the-art infrastructure like cold storage, warehouse, pack house, sorting and grading units will be created across the state. With these facilities, the farmers' produce will be safe and they will get better prices," the spokesperson said.
He said that the interference of middlemen will also end.
"Preparations have been completed to make farming a profitable deal by promoting infrastructure in cooperatives. The most important thing is that due to better storage and processing arrangements, crops will not be wasted. Along with this, an initiative is being taken to make agriculture a major source of self-reliance and employment," the spokesperson said.
Through schemes like Self reliant Integrated Development Scheme and Agri Infrastructure Fund (AIF), farmers will be linked to processing, storage and e-marketing.
This will enable them to become not only producers but also successful entrepreneurs and marketing professionals. Govt will also provide them easy loans and technical guidance.
Farmers, the spokesperson said, will be able to directly deliver their crop to the market through e-platform, which will give them a fair price and control over the market will remain in the hands of the farmers. Apart from this, infrastructure is being promoted in the cooperative sector, so that new doors of employment and income can be opened in the villages through partnership model.
