Mumbai, February 24 A proposal to provide subsidies to paddy farmers in eastern Vidarbha affected by unseasonal rains will soon be presented to the Maharashtra cabinet, State Minister Yogesh Kadam told the legislative assembly on Tuesday.
Responding to an adjournment motion raised by BJP's Sudhir Mungantiwar, the minister stated that farmers in the districts of Chandrapur, Gadchiroli, Bhandara, and Gondia have suffered significant losses due to the unseasonal rains.
The state government had announced a subsidy of Rs 20,000 per hectare for paddy growers in these districts and issued a government resolution on March 25, 2025, but the funds have not yet been disbursed, he said.
Mungantiwar alleged that while funds for farmers are delayed due to various reasons, there are no such constraints when it comes to salary hikes for employees or legislators, questioning the government's priorities.
Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar also criticised the government, saying it was not taking a positive stand on releasing the subsidy.
In response, Kadam stated that the government is serious about supporting paddy farmers and is taking steps to ensure that subsidy funds are directly transferred to farmers' bank accounts.
He pointed out that more than Rs 3,000 crore in bonus funds were disbursed to paddy farmers between 2022 and 2025.
The minister further stated that the government has noticed the role of middlemen in the farmer registration process and has introduced safeguards to ensure that only genuine farmers are enrolled.
The registration process will be completed in three months, after which a proposal for subsidy disbursement will be presented to the cabinet for approval, he said.