Irrigation Minister T. Harish Rao on Friday offered cash incentive of Rs. 10 lakh to the first village in the constituency which achieved cent per cent cashless transaction in the stipulated time. The village that comes second will be awarded Rs. 5 lakh.
“We stood first in many development activities, including transforming the constituency into an open defecation-free one. Then why cannot we achieve this?” he asked adding that new bank accounts will be opened for those without it. The Minister also handed over Rupay cards to farmers at the RDO office.
As part of creating awareness on cashless transactions, the Minister visited the Rythu Bazaar and interacted with farmers selling vegetables and enquired about the problems faced by them. Some farmers told the Minister that they were yet to get used to the new coupon system and also complained of fall in prices of vegetables.
“The problem of small change was addressed with the introduction of the new coupon system. We get the amount encashed against the coupons we get by selling vegetables,” said a woman farmer. However, farmers complained of some glitches at the coupon counter. Harish Rao told the officials to set things right at the earliest. The Minister also told the officials to create awareness among farmers about the coupon system and how to exchange them after the sale.
Addressing a meeting of traders, Mr. Harish Rao said cashless transactions would increase the business and all traders were asked to set up swiping machines at the earliest. He said the machines would be supplied by banks.
