Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, stated that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, continuous efforts are being made to address every problem faced by farmers across the country.
Responding to supplementary questions during Question Hour in the Rajya Sabha today, Mr. Chouhan stated that the government has established an Agriculture Infrastructure Fund to ensure the safe storage of farmers' produce.
He said that under the scheme, 44,243 Custom Hiring Centres, 25,854 Primary Processing Centres, more than 17,000 warehouses, and around 3,000 cold storage units have been established. The Minister added that due to such initiatives, post-harvest losses of fruits and vegetables have been reduced by 5 to 15 per cent.
The Minister informed the House that 152 Farmer-Producer Organizations (FPOs) across the country are continuously working to enhance farmers' income. Highlighting the government's procurement policy, Mr. Chouhan said that the government is providing Minimum Support Price (MSP) at least 50 per cent above the cost of production for farmers.
He alleged that during the ten-year UPA government, only 6 lakh metric tonnes of pulses were procured, while the NDA government has procured 1 crore 92 lakh metric tonnes.
The Minister noted that India has overtaken China to become the world's largest producer of rice. He said that the country has achieved self-reliance in rice and wheat, and the government has decided to make India self-sufficient in pulses as well.