The territorial administration will start disbursing drought relief to farmers in Karaikal and Puducherry from next week, Chief Minister V. Narayanasamy said here on Sunday.
Addressing a press conference, he said the administration will utilise funds to the tune of ₹18 crore sanctioned by the Centre for drought relief. Around 10,000 farmers in Puducherry and Karaikal would benefit from the drought relief scheme, he said.
“We will start distributing the amount in Karaikal from next week,” Mr. Narayanasamy said. The National Agriculture Insurance Company and United India Insurance Company have sanctioned a sum of ₹7. 53 crore under the crop insurance scheme.
‘₹1.64 cr. premium’
The territorial administration has remitted a sum of ₹1.64 crore as premium towards the crop insurance scheme, he added.
The government has remitted the amount with the two institutions as part of its election manifesto to provide crop insurance to farmers.
Under the insurance scheme, the financial institutions would provide a sum of ₹24,000 per hectare to those who lost their entire crop. Farmers who lost 75 % of the crop would be eligible to get ₹15, 000 per hectare, Mr. Narayanasamy said.
To a question on Lieutenant Governor Kiran Bedi’s decision to order a probe into drivers attached to the Pondicherry Road Transport Corporation working for legislators, Mr. Narayanasamy said Ms. Bedi was not the competent authority to order a probe in case if there was a violation.
“If we are going to talk about such violations lit needs to be told. There are 64 people working in Raj Nivas under sparing of service scheme,” he said .
Expressing satisfaction over the works carried out by the Local Administration and Public Works Departments, he said the government had sanctioned ₹1. 2 crore to clean the Uppanar canal. The consistent stand taken by the Congress party has forced the National Democratic Alliance government to reduce GST rate of 173 items from 28% to 18%. Similarly, the Centre was forced to reduce GST rate of 30 items from 12% to 5%, he added.
The Chief Minister said he had taken a consistent stand against 28 % GST for essential items . The Congress would continue to press for limiting GST to 18%, he added.
