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Subsidy scheme for precision farming

PUDUCHERRY: Minister for Industries and Agriculture V. Vaithilingam on Thursday announced a subsidy scheme for farmers who took up precision farming and cultivated crops such as brinjal, tomato, ladies finger, banana and sugarcane.

He told reporters here that the Department of Agriculture would be calling for applications from November 19 and the government’s involvement in the projects would be up to Rs 2.25 lakh per hectare.

“In the first year, we will provide 100 per cent subsidy, in the second year it will be 90 per cent, in the third year, 80 per cent. Farmers will take up the projects on their own after that,” he said.

The farmers would be guided by resource persons at each stage and provided with seeds, imported water-soluble fertilizer and plant protection chemicals. This kind of farming is being practiced in locations where water was scarce such as Hosur and Dharmapuri in Tamil Nadu. The Tamil Nadu Agricultural University would be the consultant for the project. Planting would begin by Pongal, he added. December 10 is the last date for submitting the filled in application forms. A total of 400 farmers would be chosen and the subsidy would be provided to a maximum of two hectares, he added.

Mr. Vaithilingam also said that Rs. 39.61 lakh would be distributed as relief to farmers whose crops were damaged in the whirlwind that hit Puducherry in May. The distribution would begin on November 21 and 2,069 farmers, who had cultivated banana, sugarcane, vegetables and casurina, would be compensated.

The Minister also said that Rs. 1.04 crore had been sanctioned as additional incentive to paddy farmers, who had sold paddy to the Pondicherry Marketing Committee, from October 2006 to June 2007 Till now Rs. 9 lakh had been issued and the remaining amount would be disbursed before December 31.

This incentive would also be provided to farmers, who had sold paddy to the Food Corporation of India as well. Mr. Vaithilingam said that even farmers who had misplaced their bills would be paid the incentive if they produced some evidence like the date on which the sale took place along with their farmer ID cards.

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