Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said that immediate as well as long-term remedies will be adopted for providing reasonable prices to the farmers for their produce. Work to provide relief to the farmers will be continued under immediate remedy.
Storage capacity will be increased, maximum processing units will be established, price protection will be given and benefits of global market will be derived under the long term remedies. Chouhan was addressing the meeting of Agriculture Task force held at Mantralaya on Thursday. Deliberations with agriculture experts on farmers not getting reasonable rates despite good production took place in the meeting.
Chouhan mentioned that increase in agriculture production has set a record in the state, but a problem as regard to decline in rates for agriculture produces has surfaced. An ideal arrangement will be made to redress this problem. A policy incorporating rates protection and processing arrangements will be formed. Under the policy, young children of farmers will be encouraged to make infrastructure for processing units and storage. A chain of cold storage facility will be developed in the state for onion, potatoes, fruits and vegetables and special focus will be laid on marketing. Moreover, marketing of special produces like potatoes of Malwa, Sharbati wheat, tuar pulse produced on Narmada banks and special garlic produced in Jeeran of Neemuch will be undertaken.
Besides, the Chief Minister stated that production of food grain became double in the state during the last 5 years. Irrigation area has been increased. Seed replacement rate has become 30 percent.
Advance storage arrangement for fertilizer has been made. State tops in country in soil testing. Work on all the aspects to increase production has been carried out speedily resulted in good production. The problem for not getting reasonable rates by the farmers has surfaced despite good production.
Therefore, as a immediate step, onion at the rate of Rs 8 per kg and tuar, urad, moong at support price have been purchased. Even then, long term solutions are must to redress this problem.
Agriculture Experts and Ministers suggested remedies for providing reasonable rates to the farmers in the meeting.
Agriculture Expert Ashok Gulati said- Storage capacity for agriculture produces should be increased 5 to 10 folds. Investment should be made for this. Agriculture produces should be linked with distribution network for marketing. Operation Vegies should be conducted for vegetable production in the state on the lines of operation flood carried out in Gujarat for milk production.
Agriculture Expert Punjab Singh said- Take problem of Madhya Pradesh as a challenge. Provide employment to rural youth through investment in food processing and rates protection. Focus should be laid on safety measures with increase in agriculture production.