Irrigation facility will be provided to 15 lakh hectares of agricultural land in 3 years: Majhi

Keonjhar (Odisha), Dec 26 (PTI) Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Friday said that 15 lakh hectares of land will be irrigated during the next three years in the state.

Majhi said this while addressing farmers in his home district Keonjhar after inaugurating the paddy procurement process.

He also said that the Kanpur irrigation project in Keonjhar district will be inaugurated in the next two to three months.

“Our government is fully committed to the welfare of farmers. The biggest achievement of the government, which has prepared several schemes for farmers, is the provision of a bonus of Rs 800 per quintal of paddy,” he said.

The input subsidy being provided to the paddy farmers in addition to the MSP set by the Centre has boosted the morale of farmers towards farming, he stated.

Majhi claimed that the previous BJD government had announced a bonus of Rs 100 per quintal of paddy for the farmer, but "could not give it, or maybe it did not give it knowingly".

“But our promise is like a picture drawn on stone. We are providing an input subsidy of Rs 800 per quintal of paddy. That has definitely boosted the morale of farmers,” he further said.

Last year, the input subsidy of Rs 7,000 crore was provided to about 20 lakh farmers. This year, this number is expected to increase further.

He informed the farmers that all officers have been instructed that the entire paddy procurement process will be conducted transparently. If there is any negligence in this, the concerned officials will definitely bear the consequences, the chief minister warned.

“We want diversification of crops. So, we are considering giving higher incentives in non-paddy crops,” Majhi said.

The chief minister has advised the farmers to grow pulses, oilseeds and millet. The minimum support price in such crops is also high and the state government is also thinking of providing additional input subsidy.

During the visit, Majhi unveiled the statue of tribal leader Dharanidhar Naik at the entrance of Keonjhar town. PTI BBM AAM NN