On Tuesday, the Uttar Pradesh Cabinet approved a plan to build 2,100 tube wells in 62 districts and also decided to give farmers free 'toria' (variety of mustard) seeds.
According to state agriculture minister Surya Pratap Shahi, the Cabinet meeting, presided over by chief minister Yogi Adityanath, decided to install new tube wells in 62 districts to provide farmers with access to agricultural facilities.
A tube well can irrigate 50 hectares of agricultural land, and more than Rs 839 crore will be spent on this project, which will begin this year and be finished by the end of 2023–24, according to Shahi.
The irrigation capacity will be increased through this project, according to Shahi, by up to 1.50 lakh hectares.
In a separate decision, Shahi stated that the Cabinet had decided to give farmers free mini kits containing two lakh toria (mustard) seeds due to the state's weak monsoon. The state government will be responsible for paying the estimated Rs 4.58 crore cost of this programme, according to Shahi.
According to Shahi, priority will be given to small and marginal farmers in the free distribution, and 25% of the seeds will be distributed to farmers from Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, with the remaining seeds going to other farmers in the districts.
To ensure that 30% of the farmers chosen for this programme are women, efforts will be made. He also said that access to this facility would be on a first-come, first-served basis.
According to Shahi, the farmers in the districts with the least amount of rainfall would receive these seeds first. PTI ARS HVA SAB
