Govt To Spend Rs 50,000 Cr Under New Irrigation Scheme

At the state level, the scheme is to be administered by a State Level Sanctioning Committee (SLSC) to be chaired by the Chief Secretary of respective states.

The committee will have complete authority to sanction the project and monitor its progress. Also, there shall be a district level implementation committee for ensuring last-mile coordination at the field level.

It is expected that PMKSY will provide convergence to existing schemes of water management, thus potentially boosting efficient water use.

Jaitley further said the government has taken several farmer-friendly initiatives in the past one year, including introduction of a Soil Health Card to every farmer.

"Soil Health Management is being promoted through setting up of soil and fertiliser testing laboratories. Thirty four lakh soil samples have been collected and analysis is continuing," he said.

A new scheme, Pramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojana, has been rolled out to promote organic farming, he said.

A dedicated Kisan Channel has been started by Doordarshan to address various issues concerning farmers too.

Assistance to farmers in the form of input subsidy has been increased by 50 per cent in the case of natural calamities, the FM said, adding that to avail of assistance, the norms have been relaxed to 33 per cent of crop loss from more than 50 per cent.

He further said: "Minimum Support Price (MSP) for various kharif crops has been increased. Bonus of Rs 200 per quintal has been announced for pulses. Area coverage under pulses has increased over the last year."