Punjab Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Department on Wednesday transferred Rs 3.23 crores of cotton seed subsidy into bank accounts of over 17,673 beneficiary farmers.
“Fulfilling Punjab Government’s promise of providing the 33 per cent subsidy on cotton seeds certified by Punjab Agricultural University (PAU), the Agriculture Department has transferred the funds to the farmers through direct benefit transfer (DBT) system. The amount has been released under first phase and remaining would be transferred to the eligible farmers in the coming days,” said the state Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister Gurmeet Singh Khuddian on Wednesday.
Reiterating the Chief Minister’s commitment for the farmers’ welfare, the Minister said that the high-yielding cotton seeds were made available at cheaper rates to encourage farmers to wean away from water guzzling paddy crop.
The Minister said that preventive measures are also being taken to check the attack of White Fly and Pink Bollworms. The concerned officials have been directed to conduct field inspections frequently and sensitize the farmers about taking concrete steps for prevention of this disease, he said.