Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday said the Narendra Modi government is committed to making farmers financially empowered and expressed his gratitude to the prime minister for the approval to the highest-ever fair and remunerative price (FRP) of sugarcane.
A meeting of the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Modi on Wednesday, approved Rs 10 per quintal hike in sugarcane FRP, which is the minimum price that mills have to pay to sugarcane growers, to Rs 315 per quintal for the 2023-24 season starting October.
"The Modi government is committed to making farmers financially empowered. Gratitude to PM Modi for the approval of the highest-ever fair and remunerative price for sugarcane farmers by the cabinet today. This decision will benefit about five crore sugarcane farmers and lakhs of workers working in sugar mills,” Shah tweeted in Hindi.
Shah said the government has approved various schemes in the cabinet meeting, reiterating its resolve for the welfare of farmers.
"These schemes will reduce the cost of cultivation and increase productivity. Along with this, promoting new options like natural farming, nano urea and organic fertilizers will also improve the health of the land used in agriculture,” he said in another tweet in Hindi.
The home minister also expressed his gratitude to the prime minister for approving the National Research Foundation Bill in the Union Cabinet, promoting the culture of research and development in "New India".
"With a total outlay of Rs 50,000 crore, it will pave the way for India to pioneer scientific research,” he said.
The cabinet approved a new scheme PM-PRANAM to incentivise states to promote alternative fertilizers and reduce the use of chemical fertilizers and also decided to continue the current urea subsidy scheme for three years ending March 2025, with an outlay of Rs 3.68 lakh crore.
The cabinet also approved a bill for introducing in Parliament that aimed at setting up the National Research Foundation, a new funding agency to bolster the country's research competence in areas of science and technology.
-With PTI Input
