Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi inaugurated the PM Kisan Samman Sammelan 2022 at Indian Agricultural Research Institute in New Delhi today. The Prime Minister also inaugurated 600 Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samruddhi Kendras (PMKSK) under the Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilisers. Furthermore, the Prime Minister also launched Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Jan Urvarak Pariyojana - One Nation One Fertiliser. During the event, the Prime Minister also released the 12th installment amount of Rs. 16,000 crores under the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) through Direct Benefit Transfer. The Prime Minister also inaugurated the Agri Startup Conclave and Exhibition. During the event, the PM also launched ‘Indian Edge’, an e-magazine on fertilizer. Shri Modi took a walkthrough of the Theme Pavilion of the Startup Exhibition and inspected the products on display.
Addressing the gathering, the Prime Minister started by acknowledging the presence of Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan, Jai Vigyan, and Jai Anusandhan in one premise, and said that we can see the live form of this mantra here today. He further elaborated that Kisan Sammelan is a means to make the lives of farmers easier, boost their capability, and promote advanced agricultural techniques.
In his address at the “PM Kisan Samman Sammelan 2022”, the Union Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Minister, Shri Narendra Singh Tomar said the Modi government has fulfilled all promises made to farmers since 2014.
Shri Tomar said, PM-KISAN is the world’s biggest direct benefit scheme and is an outcome of the continued commitment of Shri Modi which received accolades for its scale, transparency, and seamless transfer of funds.
Shri Tomar recalled, once a Prime Minister of India very famously remarked that of every rupee spent by the government, only 15 paise reached the intended beneficiary. But, today, every single penny of the annual grant of Rs 6,000 directly reaches farmers through DBT without any middlemen or any commission or cut money, the Minister remarked. He said PM Kisan Samman is being implemented with full transparency aided by appropriate technology. The Minister also informed that the Centre and States are working closely to rectify the list of eligible farmers by removing the bogus beneficiaries.
Shri Tomar told a gathering of over 17,000 farmers present at Pusa Mela Ground and about one crore farmers who joined the event virtually across the country that the Kisan Samman fund was never demanded by the farmers, but it was with a commitment of the Prime Minister to double the income of farmers and strengthen their financial well being that the scheme was devised. The Minister said the Samman grant of Rs 6000 to farmers and many other schemes of the Modi Government are outside the other schemes meant for the welfare of the poor, youth, and women in the country.
Shri Tomar expressed happiness that today’s event brought farmers and Agri Start-ups to the same platform. He said, apart from one crore farmers, who joined the event virtually, 732 Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs), 75 ICAR Institutes, 75 State Agricultural Universities, 600 PM Kisan Centres, 50,000 Primary Agricultural Cooperative Societies, and 2 Lakh Community Service Centers (CSCs) attended the event in virtual mode.
Referring to the inauguration of the Agri Startup Conclave and Exhibition by Shri Modi, the Agriculture Minister said that our farmers are skilled and innovative, but they don’t have any platform to showcase their talents. He said, the innovative and educated youth of our country are working on various initiates like the innovation of Precision Farming, Post-Harvest & Value Add Solutions, Allied Agriculture, Waste to Wealth, Mechanization for Small Farmers, Supply Chain Management & Argi-Logistic and working on both farming or non-farming sector.
Shri Tomar also informed that around 1500 start-ups are participating in the two-day Kisan Sammelan and 300 start-ups are showcasing their farm-related innovations to increase production and productivity, reduce post-harvest losses and augment income, besides creating new job opportunities. The Minister also underlined that while only 80-100 startups were working in Agriculture sector in 2014, the number has grown to 2000 now and is likely to touch the figure of 10,000 by 2025 due to enabling tech milieu provided by the Modi Government.
Shri Tomar said, with the inauguration of 600 Prime Minister Kisan Smurudhi Kendra (PMKSK), the fertilizer retail shops will now be converted into one-stop shops. He said these centers will not only provide inputs to the farmers but also resolve their other types of problems. He said PMKSK will cater to the needs of the farmers in the country and provide agri-inputs (fertilizers, seeds, implements, etc); testing that will provide facilities for soil, seeds, and fertilizers; create awareness among farmers, provide information regarding various Government schemes and ensure regular capacity building of retailers at block/ district level outlets.
Speaking about the One Nation One Fertilizer (ONOF) scheme, Shri Tomar said that now all types of fertilizers whether it is DAP, NPK, or Urea, will be sold under one brand name "Bharat" to standardize fertilizer brands across the nation irrespective of the company that manufactures it.