Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday dedicated to the nation more than 1.25 lakh PM Kisan Samriddhi Kendras to help farmers and released the 14th instalment of Rs 17,000 crore under the PM-Kisan scheme directly into the accounts of 8.5 crore farmers at a function held at Sikar in Rajasthan.
PM Modi also launched Urea Gold, a new variety of Urea fertiliser coated with sulphur, and onboarded 1600 Farmer Producer Organisations on Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) to help them get better prices for their goods.
In a major boost to Rajasthan’s health infrastructure, the Prime Minister inaugurated 5 new medical colleges at Chittorgarh, Dholpur, Sirohi, Sikar and Sri Ganganagar and laid the foundation stone for 7 medical colleges at Baran, Bundi, Karauli, Jhunjhunu, Sawai Madhopur, Jaisalmer and Tonk. Besides, he inaugurated 6 Eklavya Model Residential Schools located in districts of Udaipur, Banswara, Partapgarh and Dungarpur and Kendriya Vidyalaya Tivri, Jodhpur to improve the level of education at the grassroot level in the state.
Addressing the gathering at the function, PM Modi said that the 1.25 lakh PM Kisan Samriddhi Kendras will pave the way for the prosperity of the farmers. These Kendras are being developed as one-stop shops for the needs of the farmers and will also provide advanced information on agriculture-related issues to the farmers. Besides, these kendras will provide timely information regarding agriculture schemes of the government, he added.
The Prime Minister advised the farmers to keep visiting the kendras and benefit from the knowledge that would be provided by experts. He also said that an additional 1.75 lakh PM Kisan Samriddhi Kendras will be established before the end of the year.
PM Modi explained that the onboarding of Farmer Producer Organisations on Open Network for Digital Commerce would make it easier for the farmers to take their produce to the market from any part of the country.
Price of urea
He said that the price of urea in the country is an example of the government saving the farmers’ expenses.
The Prime Minister informed that a bag of urea fertiliser which costs Rs 266 in India costs about Rs 800 in Pakistan, about Rs 720 in Bangladesh, about Rs 2100 in China and about Rs 3000 in USA. “The government will not let the urea prices bother our farmers”, PM Modi said, “When a farmer goes to buy urea, he has the belief that it is Modi’s guarantee.”
Noting the importance of farmers of the Sikar and Shekhawati regions, the Prime Minister paid tribute to their hard work despite the hardships of the terrain. The Prime Minister said that the current government at the centre understands the pains and needs of the farmers.
The Prime Minister said that the present Government is working in all earnest to reduce the expenses of the farmers and support them in their time of need. Referring to PM Kissan Samman Nidhi, the Prime Minister said that it is the largest scheme in the world where funds are directly transferred into the bank accounts of farmers.
He informed that more than Rs 2.6 lakh crore rupees have been directly transferred to the bank accounts of farmers so far if today’s 14th installment is to be included which has been beneficial to the farmers in covering various expenses.
The Prime Minister highlighted the promotion of millet and measures like branding millets as Shree Anna. He said that through the promotion of Shree Anna, its production, processing and export are increasing. He recalled the presence of millets in the Official White House dinner with President Joe Biden during his recent visit.
Viksit villages
The Prime Minister said “India’s development is possible only if its villages develop. India can be Viksit (developed) only with Viksit villages. That is why the government is working to make all the facilities available in the villages, which were so far available only in the cities”. Mentioning the expanding health infrastructure, the Prime Minister said that Rajasthan had only ten medical colleges till 9 years ago. Today this number has reached 35. This is improving medical facilities in nearby areas and giving opportunities for quality education for the medical students. He said that medical colleges being inaugurated today and those for which the foundation stone is being laid will improve medical infrastructure in many areas of the state.
For decades, the Prime Minister said that the villages and the poor were also left behind due to a lack of good schools and education in the villages and lamented that the children of backward and tribal societies had no means to fulfill their dreams.
The Prime Minister said it was the government’s priority to create modern infrastructure in Rajasthan. He mentioned the inauguration of two hi-tech expressways in the last few months and said that Rajasthan is writing a new saga of development through a major section of the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway and the Amritsar-Jamnagar Expressway. He also mentioned the Vande Bharat Express train being run from the state. Shri Modi stated that the Government is investing in infrastructure and developing facilities related to tourism which will result in new opportunities for Rajasthan as well. “Expressways and better rail facilities will welcome the tourists when Rajasthan calls out “Padharo mahare desh”, he remarked.
