The regional conferences of the mandal level farmers’ coordination committees would be held on February 25 and 26.
The conferences are aimed at giving orientation to FCC members about the role they should play in creating awareness among farmers in various programmes and schemes launched by the government for their welfare. The regional conferences would accordingly be held at the Agriculture University here on February 25 and at Ambedkar stadium in Karimnagar the next day.
The decision was announced following instructions from Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao to senior officials.
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The government would soon constitute the farmers coordination committee at the State level with representation from all the districts as well as agriculture scientists, specialists and experts.
Draft budget
The Chief Minister who interacted with the senior officials directed them to prepare draft budget for agriculture sector as the government was planning to introduce a separate budget from the next financial year. The government was committed to provide financial support to farmers under the Farmers Investment Support Scheme and the assistance would be paid through cheque in two phases.
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The Chief Minister wanted officials concerned to ensure that cheques of ₹4,000 each as assistance per acre for rainy season were handed over to farmers from April 20 and the disbursal of the second instalment would commence from November 18.
The government was planning to supply rice planting machines to farmers as part of efforts to introduce mechanisation in agriculture.
FCC members from Jangaon, Medak, Sangareddy, Mahabubnagar, Wanaparthy, Nagar Kurnool, Jogulamba Gadwal, Nalgonda, Suryapet, Yadadri Bhongir, Vikarabad, Medchal, Rangareddy districts would participate in the conference on February 25. The conference to be held in Karimnagar would be attended by the members from Adilabad, Mancherial, Nirmal, Komaram Bhim Asifabad, Karimnagar, Jagtial, Pedapalli, Warangal urban, Warangal Rural, Jayashankar Bhoopalpally, Mahabubabad, Khammam, Bhadradri Kothagudem and Siddipet districts.
The participants of the FCC conferences would have an opportunity to directly interact with the Chief Minister on their respective issues. Officials from Agriculture, Marketing and Horticulture departments would participate in the conferences for which the government would make arrangements for transport and other needs of the participants.
The government had decided to supply manuals on the role that would be played by the FCCs to members that would consist of details like constitution of platforms for bringing together farmers, training, finer details of the input assistance scheme, modalities for ensuring payment of minimum support price and regulations that should be followed while bringing the produce to markers.
The officials were directed to ensure that necessary allocations for the scheme were made in the next year’s budget. He expressed concern over the shortage of agriculture labour being faced by farmers and said the government had therefore proposed to encourage mechanisation in operations to overcome this shortage.