The Hindu : Kerala / Thiruvananthapuram News : Farm, debt relief panels to be constituted soon

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Aug 18, 2006

Kerala

Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

Farm, debt relief panels to be constituted soon

Special Correspondent

Joint farming to be popularised, says Achuthanandan

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: An Agriculture Commission and Debt Relief Commission will be set up before the year-long moratorium on farm loans declared by the Government ends, Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan said.

Inaugurating the State-level Farmers Day celebrations organised by the Department of Agriculture here on Thursday evening, Mr. Achuthanandan said the Government was committed to improving the lot of the farmers. It has also been decided to give Rs.50,000 each to the families of farmers who had committed suicide. The relief will be distributed before Onam, he said.

He said the import policy being followed by the Union Government had come as a blow to farmers. The NDA and UPA Governments have reduced the import cess for agriculture products to help monopolists and multinational companies. The Left parties and the State Government have decided to oppose these policies and register their protest with the Union Government. A thorough change in the agriculture policy of the Centre is imperative, he said.

He accused the former State Government of failing to apprise the Union Government of the gravity of the crisis in the agriculture sector and secure relief for the farmers. The UDF Government had not even distributed the awards for farmers since 2002. Joint farming system should be popularised to increase the yield and reduce the production cost, Mr. Achuthanandan said.

Agriculture Minister Mullakkara Ratnakaran, in his presidential address, said the Government would play an active role in strengthening paddy and coconut farming in the State. The Government intervention will begin from the distribution of seeds to marketing the final product. Steps will be taken develop a new brand of rice and also promote tender coconut. By launching a marketing mechanism for tender coconut, the Government has taken the first step. The campaign `Rice for all' and `All for rice' will be revived, he said.

Mr. Achuthanandan gave away the awards for excellence in farming. Law Minister M. Vijayakumar, Minister for Civil Supplies and Animal Husbandry C. Divakaran, Pannian Ravindran, MP, V. Sivankutty, MLA, and Mayor C. Jayan Babu were among those who attended the function.

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