UP Budget 2022: Rs 12,800 crore Set Aside for Agriculture Sector

Riding high on popular central schemes such as the flagship PM Kisan Samman Nidhi Yojana, the Yogi Adityanath government has made another attempt to reach out to farmers by allocating more than Rs 12,800 crore to the agricultural sector in 2022-23.

The state government had allocated Rs 12,340 crore for 2021-22, which was later reduced to Rs 11,430 crore. Over Rs 6,200 crore of the total allocation has been designated for crop cultivation activities, while over Rs 1,100 crore has been designated for soil and water conservation.

Approximately Rs 6,000 crore has been set aside for animal husbandry, dairy development, fisheries, forestry, horticulture, food grain storage, and agricultural research and education. The budgetary allocation is seen as the BJP government's attempt to gain support from the farming community.

The state government reaffirmed its commitment to providing free irrigation to farmers via 34,307 state tube wells and 252 small branch canals. A Rs 1,000 crore provision has also been proposed under the CM Minor Irrigation Scheme.

The state government has expanded the scope of the CM Krishak Accident Welfare Scheme, which has been in effect since September 14, 2019, to include members of farmers' families whose primary source of income is agricultural income.

Those who do agricultural work on leased land are also covered by the scheme, which provides for a maximum payout of Rs 5 lakh in the event of accidental death or disability. In the budget, a provision of Rs 650 crore is proposed for this scheme.

In addition to irrigation facilities, the state government has prioritised non-conventional energy sources, such as the installation of solar pumps through the PM Kisan Urja Suraksha and Utthan Mahabhiyan Yojana. In 2022-2023, up to 15,000 solar pumps are proposed to be installed.

To ensure quality seeds are distributed to farmers, the state government has proposed distributing 60.2 lakh quintal seeds in 2022-23, which is slightly more than the 60.1 lakh quintal seeds distributed in 2021-22.

In addition, the budget announced the distribution of 119.3 lakh metric tonnes of fertiliser in the current fiscal year. This is significantly more than the 99.80 lakh metric tonnes of fertiliser distributed by the state government in 2021-22. The budget also stated that the government had made record sugarcane price payments to sugarcane farmers totaling over Rs 1.72 lakh crore as of May 16.