Government schemes are important part of UPSC preparation. Lets understand some of the important government schemes under Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare (MoAFW).
PM-Kisan Samman Nidhi Scheme by MoAFW
PM Kisan Samman Nidhi launched on February 24th, 2019, to supplement the financial needs of landholding farmers.
Financial Benefits: The scheme transfers Rs 6000 per year in three equal installments, every four months. The Amount will be given directly into the bank accounts of farmers through the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) mode.
Scope of the Scheme: Initially intended for Small and Marginal Farmers (SMFs) with landholdings up to 2 hectares. The scheme has been extended to cover all landholding farmers.
Funding and Implementation: The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare implements the scheme, which receives 100% funding from the Government of India as a Central Sector Scheme.
PM-KISAN Mobile App: The National Informatics Centre, in collaboration with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, developed and designed the PM-KISAN Mobile App.
Physical Verification Module: As per the scheme’s provisions, the authorities conduct a mandatory physical verification of 5% of beneficiaries annually.
Agriculture Infrastructure Fund approved under MoAFW
Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF) was established in 2020.
Aim: AIF aim of providing comprehensive financial support to farmers, agri-entrepreneurs, and various farmer groups among others.
Objective: is to facilitate the creation of post-harvest management infrastructure and the development of community farming assets nationwide.
AIF offers 3% interest subvention, credit guarantee support through the Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Micro and Small Enterprises (CGTMSE) scheme for loans of up to Rs. 2 crore.
AIF contributes to the reduction of post-harvest losses by establishing and upgrading agricultural infrastructure, including primary processing centers for vegetables and high-tech hubs for the rental of agricultural machinery.
An online Management Information System (MIS) platform will manage and monitor the fund. This platform will enable all eligible entities to apply for loans under the Fund. The setting up monitoring committees at the National, State, and District levels will ensure real-time monitoring and provide effective feedback.
ATMA Scheme (Agricultural Technology Management Agency Scheme)
The National Agricultural Technology Project established the ATMA with the primary goal of disseminating technology. ATMA facilitates the creation of links among research organizations and government departments involved in agricultural development.
Objectives:
- To strengthen farmer linkages
- To increase quality of technologies disseminated
- To provide coordination and management of activities involved in technology adaptation
- To provide effective co – ordination of activities of different agencies involved in technology dissemination
- To move towards ownership of agricultural technology system by key shareholders
Features:
- To create Farmer Advisory Committee. This will improve feedback.
- To adopt bottom up planning procedure
- To form and strengthen farmer’s interest group
- To develop new PPP (Public – Private Partnerships)
- To encourage private sector in technology transfer
- To validate and refine technologies through research units
- Provide in – service training to increase staff competence
ATMA empowers farmers and farm women groups by raising awareness about new technologies through visits, fairs, and melas. It also provides demand-driven training to farmers and farm women, along with offering incentives and rewards to the best performers.
Also learn about Public Distribution System from here.
PM- Krishi Sinchayee Yojana
- Initiated in 2015, PMKSY aims to enhance access to water for farming, expand the cultivable area under assured irrigation, improve water use efficiency, and promote sustainable water conservation practices.
- Operated as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme (Core Scheme), the Centre and States share the funding in a ratio of 75:25, which shifts to 90:10 for the north-eastern region and hilly states.
- In 2020, the Ministry of Jal Shakti launched a mobile application for Geo-Tagging project components under PMKSY.
Objective:
- Aim to achieve convergence of investments in irrigation at the field level by preparing district-level and, if necessary, sub-district-level water use plans.
- Work towards increasing physical access to water on farms and expanding the cultivable area under assured irrigation (“Har Khet ko pani”).
- Integrate water sourcing, distribution, and efficient utilization, employing appropriate technologies and practices.
- Improve on-farm water use efficiency to reduce wastage and increase availability both in duration and extent.
- Actively encourage the adoption of precision irrigation and other water-saving technologies (“More crop per drop”).
- Take steps to boost aquifer recharge and introduce sustainable water conservation practices.
- Ensure the holistic development of rainfed areas using the watershed approach, focusing on soil and water conservation, groundwater regeneration, runoff management, livelihood opportunities, and other natural resource management activities.
- Promote extension activities related to water harvesting, water management, and crop alignment for farmers and grassroots-level field functionaries.
- Explore the feasibility of reusing treated municipal wastewater for peri-urban agriculture.
Soil Health Card scheme under MoAFW
- The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare introduced the scheme on December 5, 2015.
- The Soil Health Card (SHC) is a printed report containing information on the nutrient status of soil across 12 parameters, including pH, Electrical Conductivity (EC), Organic Carbon (OC), Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), Potassium (K), Sulphur (S), Zinc (Zn), Boron (B), Iron (Fe), Manganese (Mn), and Copper (Cu) for farm holdings.
- The scheme provides SHC to all farmers nationwide every 3 years. Its goal is to help farmers apply recommended nutrient doses based on soil test values, thus improving soil health and fertility, reducing costs, and increasing profits. Farmers can track their soil samples and access their Soil Health Card reports.
- SHC offers a detailed, field-specific report on soil fertility status and other key soil parameters affecting crop productivity.
- The National Productivity Council (NPC) reports that the Soil Health Card scheme has decreased the use of chemical fertilizers by 8-10% and boosted productivity by 5-6%.
- Farmers have gained the ability to understand soil health parameters and improve productivity through the judicious application of soil nutrients, thanks to the issuance of Soil Health Cards.
E-NAM (National Agriculture Market)
- Government launched the pan-India electronic trade portal linking Agricultural Produce Market Committees (APMCs) across states on April 14, 2016.
- The portal facilitates contactless remote bidding and allows traders to make mobile-based anytime payments, eliminating the necessity for visits to mandis or banks.
- As of now, the e-NAM portal has integrated 585 mandis in 16 states and 2 union territories. Plans are underway to expand coverage to an additional 415 mandis, thereby increasing the total number of e-NAM mandis to 1,000.
- The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare launched three new features on the National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) Platform.
- Integration of Negotiable Warehouse Receipt System (e-NWRs) Module with e-NAM
- FPO (Farmers Producer Organisation) trading Module
- Launch of Logistic Module
- These features aim to strengthen agriculture marketing by reducing the farmers’ requirement to physically visit wholesale mandis to sell their harvested produce.
- This action is significant given the urgent need to decongest mandis to effectively combat Covid-19.
Learn Important schemes by MoHUA for UPSC Prelims from here.