Rajasthan CM Gehlot asks Centre to mention steps it took to double income of farmers
Jun 18, 2023
Jaipur (Rajasthan) [India], June 18 : Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Sunday said that the Centre should tell how many steps it has taken for doubling the income of farmers in the last five years.
While addressing reporters, CM Gehlot said, "It is easy to talk about doubling the income of the farmers. In the last five years, the Government of India should tell how many steps have been taken (in this direction)."
He stated that if Congress party returns to power in Rajasthan, it will emphasize on the micro irrigation.
"We are taking one step after another. We are giving good seeds, and good fertilizers to the farmers. If our government comes back to power, we will lay emphasis on micro irrigation," he said.
Earlier in year 2022 a study conducted by SBI Research showed that incomes of farmers have doubled for certain crops in some states from 2017-18 to 2021-22.
The incomes of soybean farmers in Maharashtra and cotton in Karnataka doubled during the period, while for all other cases it rose in the range of 1.3 -1.7 times, the study showed.
The average incomes of wheat farmers in Rajasthan grew 1.3 times during the period, whereas groundnut farmers in Gujarat grew 1.5 times.
The study was based on primary data of SBI's agri portfolio across states containing granular data of various crops from agri-intensive branches and analyzed the change in income of farmers over the past five years.
The Government of India in 2016 had constituted an Inter-ministerial Committee to examine issues relating to "Doubling of Farmers Income" (DFI) and recommend strategies to achieve the same.
The Committee submitted its Report to the Government in September, 2018 containing the strategy for doubling of farmers' income by the year 2022.
