Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on October 16 assured farmers of full support to boost agricultural income, as she inaugurated the Farmers Training and Common Facility Centre and a new agro-processing unit. Addressing the gathering, she highlighted initiatives like soil health cards, fertilisers, financial assistance, and the increased MSP for foodgrains and pulses. “The Farmers’ Training and Common Facility Centre in Raichur will greatly benefit our farmers. It will help farmers get more price for agricultural products, tie producers to markets, empower women, improve quality and shelf-life of farm produce and training and capacity building of farmers.
Raichur district is one of the major pulse production regions of Karnataka and approximately 80,000 metric tonnes of tur and 34,000 metric tonnes of chickpeas are cultivated annually. “This vast production base will contribute to strengthening the pulse value chain. The new processing unit established under this scheme has the capacity to process 133 metric tonnes of tur, 100 metric tonnes of chickpeas, and 76 metric tonnes of mixed pulses per year.
Through this, farmers will receive better prices, and dependence on middlemen will decrease,” Sitharaman noted.
“In the long term, this venture aims to empower farmers, strengthen farmer producer organizations, and promote holistic rural development by creating a sustainable and market-oriented pulse industry ecosystem,” she added. The scheme enhances the pulse market value and long-term viability by promoting the production of tur, chickpeas, and mixed pulses, while also creating sustainable livelihood opportunities for self-help groups and rural entrepreneurs.
