CM Suvendu Adhikari at a public meeting in Hooghly’s Pursurah on Thursday
Pursurah/Kolkata: CM Suvendu Adhikari on Thursday announced a slew of measures for Bengal’s potato farmers, including a govt guarantee to compensate them if market prices fall below Rs 1,120 per quintal and an assurance that there would be no restrictions on transporting potatoes to other states. Addressing a Krishak Samman Nidhi programme at Pursurah in Hooghly, Adhikari said govt would provide a transport subsidy of Rs 50 per quintal for potatoes sent outside Bengal by road or rail. “This year, 4.75 lakh quintals of potatoes have been purchased from 49 cold storages at a remunerative price of Rs 950 per quintal. I want to assure potato farmers that if the free-on-board price falls below Rs 1,120 per quintal, state govt will compensate for the gap,” he said. The CM said govt would make efforts to dispose of 27 lakh quintals of potatoes stored in cold storages by Nov 30, though the deadline could be extended till Dec 31. The CM further announced a Rs 200-per-quintal bonus for farmers selling paddy at govt mandis and said the procurement price would be gradually raised to Rs 3,100 per quintal. Adhikari also disbursed an additional Rs 3,000 annual assistance for farmers covered under PM-Kisan scheme. With the Rs 6,000 provided by Centre, more than 46 lakh farmers in Bengal would receive a total of Rs 9,000 annually, he said. The scheme will be implemented to provide a monthly allowance to eligible educated unemployed youth from 21-45 years. Under it, Rs 3,000 monthly allowance will be given to unemployed graduates, and Rs 2,000 to others. This scheme will benefit those whose family income is less than Rs 1 lakh per year and who are not receiving benefits from any existing social protection scheme.
He also announced that potato cultivation would be brought under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, with state govt bearing the insurance premium for farmers. CM announces ‘ Bhorsha Karmasuchi ’ rollout in Jan CM Suvendu Adhikari announced that state govt would roll out ‘Bhorsha Karmasuchi’ in Jan. You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Kolkata | Silver Rate in Kolkata | Bank Holidays in Kolkata | Public Holidays in Kolkata | Kolkata AQI | Weather in Kolkata | Petrol Price in Kolkata | Diesel Price in Kolkata | CNG Price in Kolkata | LPG Price in Kolkata Stay updated with the latest Kolkata news.
No vehicle carrying potatoes would be stopped at the border, Adhikari said, alleging that potato farmers had faced harassment and restrictions during the previous Trinamool govt. He also assured compensation to farmers affected by the recent floods. Download the TOI App.