A major agricultural crisis is developing in Meghalaya, stemming from low incomes and landlessness faced by farmers, advisor to the Hill Farmers Union (HFU), Bremley WB Lyngdoh warned today.
The situation is not helped by the fact that only 8,967 farmers in the state received cash transfers as part of the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme.
More than 85 percent of Meghalaya’s estimated population of 34 lakh are involved in agriculture. Under PM-KISAN, eligible farmers receive Rs 6,000 per year in three instalments from the central government. Fewer than 9,000 farmers from the state received the eighth instalment on Friday, making Meghalaya the state with the lowest number of beneficiaries in the North East and second-lowest in the country.
“This is a huge missed opportunity for our deserving farmers, especially during these dark days of the pandemic when they are struggling to make a living,” Lyngdoh told Highland Post.
On behalf of the HFU he had visited many villages across the state after the first lockdown was lifted last year and found that many farmers were deserving but did not have the right documents to qualify for PM-KISAN.
Farmers are required to produce registered proof of their name, age, gender, caste/tribal category, Aadhaar number, bank account and land ownership.
Aadhaar was exempted for Meghalaya beneficiaries, but only until March 31.
“When we met the farmers during our training sessions, we found that many don’t have the required land documents and Aadhaar cards needed to qualify for the PM-KISAN scheme,” Lyngdoh said. “We also found that the number of landless farmers who have become labourers has been skyrocketing over the years. This is a major crisis unfolding because our remaining farmers will not be able to produce enough food to sustain their livelihoods or feed the growing demand in our state.”
More needs to be done to support agriculturists, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic, he opined, adding that it should be up to the state government to certify the eligibility of farmers, based on a self-declaration by the latter.
According to PM-KISAN guidelines, state governments are required to send “correct and verified data of farmers”, which the state nodal officers authenticate and upload to the scheme’s database.
