Union govt is focused on farmers’ welfare: Official
Coimbatore: India has achieved 12% ethanol blending in petrol and this year’s target was to achieve 15% ethanol blending, said Manoj Ahuja, secretary to the department of agriculture and farmers’ welfare, Union , at the 43rd convocation organized by the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) here on Saturday.
“India depends on the import of fuels.
The Union government has initiated a policy promoting the use of ethanol-blended fuels. We have achieved 12% ethanol blending in petrol. This year, our target is to achieve 15% ethanol blending. A lion’s share of the ethanol will be derived from sugarcane and maize, offering farmers additional benefits from growing them for fuel production.”
He said the Centre had been prioritizing agriculture for the past 10 years. “The agricultural ministry’s has increased fivefold to ₹1.25 lakh crore from ₹25,000 crore. Numerous new schemes have been introduced for farmers.”
Under the PM Kisan Yojana, he said, each farmer would receive ₹6,000 annually as a direct benefit transfer scheme. “As on date, ₹3 lakh crore has been transferred to 11 crore farmers, making it one of the largest direct benefit transfer programmes in the world.”
Speaking about agricultural risk management, Ahuja said, “When weather-related losses occur, farmers face significant challenges. The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, a government-sponsored crop insurance scheme, provides risk protection. Over the past eight years, farmers have contributed approximately ₹30,000 crore in premiums. And we have settled claims totalling about ₹1.50 lakh crore.”
Highlighting the importance of water conservation, he said, “In India, 86% of water is used for the agricultural sector, compared to around 70% in other countries. However, our water use efficiency is only about 33%, whereas in developed countries it is as high as 55%. With water scarcity increasing, initiatives like the ‘Per Drop More Crop’ scheme has been implemented. For instance, utilizing drip irrigation for fertilizer application could improve the water use efficiency from 33% to 90%.”
Ahuja emphasized on the role of agriculture graduates and said, “Approximately 30,000 agriculture graduates enter the workforce annually. With 6.50 lakh villages in the country, if these graduates could bring their knowledge to rural areas, while learning from farmers, the transmission of knowledge will significantly increase.”
Tamil Nadu Government R N Ravi presided over the convocation ceremony, during which TNAU vice-chancellor V Geethalakshmi presented the academic report. A total of 1,064 undergraduates, 372 postgraduates and 153 PhD holders received their degrees from the governor.
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