Latest news with #UnionAgricultureMinistry
The Hindu
19-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Indus water belongs to Indian farmers, Chouhan assures farm outfits
Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said on Monday (May 19, 2025) that the decision to keep in abeyance the Indus Waters Treaty corrected a historic injustice done to India in 1960. Blaming the Jawaharlal Nehru government, he said the treaty had given away 80% of the river's water to Pakistan and that India also paid ₹83 crore (now worth ₹5,500 crore) to that country as part of the agreement. The new move, taken after the Pahalgam terror attack, would benefit Indian farmers and the country, he said. 'We will ensure that Indian farmers get their due share of water from the Indus river,' he added. The Minister was addressing several farmers' organisations from the northern States at a meeting in the national capital. The Union Agriculture Ministry said in a release that farmer organisations present at the meeting welcomed the government's decision and demanded that the treaty be completely abrogated. 'They also appealed to the government to ensure that the water from the Indus river is used in States such as Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Jammu and Kashmir,' the release said. In a statement issued after the meeting, Bharatiya Kisan Union (Non-Political) spokesman Dharmendra Malik said that India had the legal right to terminate the treaty. 'The treaty was a shameful agreement that allowed an enemy country to use our water. We hope that similar bold decisions will be taken in the future for the welfare of farmers and national security,' he said. Awareness campaigns Earlier, talking to reporters, Mr. Chouhan said he had held discussions with State Agriculture Ministers and senior officials on the Viksit Krishi Sankalp Abhiyan about spreading information on technological advances in agriculture among farmers. He said the Centre would hold meetings of the Vice-Chancellors of State Agriculture Universities on the campaign, where 2,170 teams of scientists would visit villages across the country to directly engage with and train farmers. 'The campaign will follow a two-way communication approach—on one hand, scientists will share research and technical know-how with farmers, and on the other, they will gather insights into the challenges farmers face in the field. These findings will help guide future research efforts and provide practical, location-specific solutions,' Mr. Chouhan said. He added that the Centre was working based on the spirit of 'One Nation, One Agriculture, One Team', and such 'lab to farms' campaigns would help in increasing agricultural production ahead of the upcoming Kharif sowing season.
Hans India
09-05-2025
- Business
- Hans India
Centre agrees to bail out chilli farmers from crisis
Hyderabad: The Union Agriculture Ministry has agreed to a request from Union Minister for Coal and Mines, G Kishan Reddy, to implement the Price Deficiency Payment (PDP) under the Central Government's Market Intervention Scheme (MIS) to benefit chilli farmers in Telangana. On Thursday, Kishan Reddy announced that when crops were sold in the market for less than the cost of cultivation, the Union Agriculture Ministry has assured that measures will be taken to ensure that chilli farmers do not incur any losses, at the very least covering their cultivation costs. The Union Agriculture Ministry has instructed the Telangana Agriculture Department to take necessary steps to implement this scheme in line with MIS guidelines. On April 4 of this year, Kishan Reddy had previously written to Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, requesting action to prevent financial losses for chilli farmers in Telangana. He highlighted that farmers in the districts of Khammam, Mahabubabad, Jogulamba Gadwala, Bhadradri Kothagudem, Jayashankar Bhupalpalli, Mulugu, Suryapet, Warangal, Hanmakonda, and Nagarkurnool rely heavily on chilli cultivation but are currently receiving prices lower than their cultivation costs in the market. In response to this request, the Union Agriculture Ministry announced that, for the financial year 2024-25, the scheme will be applied to 1,72,135 metric tonnes of the chilli crop produced in Telangana, which accounts for 25 per cent of the total 688,540 metric tonnes produced. The scheme will pay farmers the difference between the market price and their cultivation costs under the Market Intervention Scheme, with the MIS price for chilli set at Rs 10,374 per quintal. It has been specified that the state government must first deposit the difference between the MIS price and the market price directly into the farmers' accounts. The central government initiated this programme in light of reports that middlemen were purchasing quintals of chilli for as low as Rs. 5,000 to Rs. 6,000, effectively cheating farmers. The state government was urged to recognise and address the financial struggles that the chilli farmers in the state are facing. The central government clarified that the state will bear 50 per cent of the costs. The central government will reimburse the remaining amount. It was also noted that only farmers who sell their chilli crops in recognised APMC markets will benefit from the market intervention scheme. Recently, the government, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, introduced the Pradhan Mantri Aaya Surakshan Abhiyan (PM Asha) scheme to ensure farmers receive a minimum price amidst fluctuating crop prices, along with the Market Intervention Scheme (MIS) for horticultural products, including chilli.
The Hindu
02-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Centre defers May 4 meeting with farmers over participation of Punjab Government
The Centre on Thursday (May 1, 2025) deferred the proposed May 4 meeting with farmer leaders in Chandigarh, urging them to allow Punjab Government officials to participate. Union Agriculture Ministry's joint secretary Puran Chandra Kishan wrote to the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha (KMM) in this regard. The communication came days after farmer leader Jagjit Singh Dallewal said that they would be forced to boycott the talks if Punjab government representatives were invited. He claimed the farming community harboured deep resentment against the Punjab government over the eviction of protesting farmers from Shambhu and Khanauri border points in March. The SKM (Non-Political) and KMM on April 27 wrote a letter to Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, urging the Centre not to include representatives of the Punjab government in the proposed meeting. In Thursday's (May 1, 2025) letter, joint secretary Kishan said, 'As you know, State Governments have an important role in the federal structure. Therefore, it would be appropriate to include the state government in the meeting. You are requested to reconsider the above decision, so that we can move forward towards a solution through dialogue'. 'Therefore, it is requested that after positive deliberation, you give your consent for the meeting with the participation of the state. The meeting of 4 May is postponed till we get your consent. The date of the next meeting will be decided after receiving information from you,' stated the letter, which was released by the farmers. Meanwhile, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, when asked about the farmers' demand, said none of the Ministers or officials will join the talks this time. 'Your (farmers') demands concern the Centre. You hold talks directly with it. We do not have any problem,' said Mr. Mann. On March 19, Punjab Police had cracked down on agitating farmers, detaining their leaders in Mohali when they were returning from a meeting with a central delegation led by Agriculture Minister Chouhan in Chandigarh. Also read: Why are farmers protesting again? | Explained The farmer leaders and some other farmers who were detained were released in subsequent days. The March 19 meeting was organised to discuss the farmers' demands, including the Minimum Support Price (MSP) guarantee. Punjab Police had last month evicted farmers and dismantled temporary structures from the Shambhu and Khanauri border points where the sit-ins were being held by them for over a year.
