Govt committed to make agriculture profitable: Chidambaram

Baramati, Mar 11 (UNI) The government's goal is to provide all help to farmers in order to make agricultural activity a profitable business for them, said Union Finance Minister P Chidambaram here today.

Delivering his address at the 6th Annual Baramati Initiative on ICT and Development: The Potential of e-Agriculture here, Mr Chidambaram outlined the four key ingredients of success for Indian farming. These were water, credit, technology and marketing, he said.

India being monsoon-dependent, there was a need for radical solutions to solve the perennial problem of water shortage for Indian farmers. With water tables declining, he called for adoption of drip irrigation to be used on a large-scale. The available water must be taken to the farmer, he said.

He revealed that the government has finalised a Rs 4,500-crore package for repair and restoration of water bodies and 20,000 water bowls would be repaired in the first phase.

On directing credit flow to farmers, which he described as ''very important'', Mr Chidambaram said that his government had promised to double farm credit in three years and this would be achieved smoothly.

In the first year, we exceeded our target of Rs 105,000-crore by releasing Rs 125,000-crore, in the second year (FY 06) we will exceed our target of Rs 141,000-crore and the next year, we are confident of exceeding our target of Rs 175,000-crore, he said.

According to him, new instruments were needed to deliver credit to farmers and to that effect, micro-financing organisations would be encouraged, he averred.

We have also finalised a Rs 14,500-crore package to revitalize the co-operative structure in India and by the first quarter of next year, most state governments will sign a MoU with the Central Government for this, he stated.

The government was also considering the post-office network to deliver credit to farmers, he disclosed, adding that a bill to recognize micro-finance organisations will be introduced in Parliament in the coming session. Micro-finance organisations will function as an intermediary organisation to deliver credit to farmers and will enhance credit flow to farmers, he said.

Emphasising the importance of information and communication technologies (ICT) in enhancing India's agricultural productivity, Mr Chidambaram said that farmers in India have shown the capacity to absorb knowledge and technology. Give him technology in terms of product and market information and if this is delivered to him, he will respond positively, he said.

Farmers will diversify into crops other than wheat and paddy only when they are assured of a ready market, he said, adding that markets for fruits, flowers, poultry and piggery should be created.

He said that conditions should be created for farmers to feel that the entire country is their market and to that effect all barriers like ST barriers and inter-state barriers should be eliminated, he said.

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