Dr B Thomas (Special correspondent)
Highlights of the meeting
* The Secondary Agriculture Directorate should connect with MSMEs, Aggregators, Self Help Groups and Anchor Bank to double the income of farmers. Officials need to coordinate with aggregators to convince them to purchase farm products from farmers.
* CM instructed the officials to formulate an action plan to increase the production of oil seeds and pulses.
* Implement Raitha Shakthi Scheme of paying Rs250 per acre Diesel subsidy within a month.
Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai today instructed the officials to ensure that there is no shortage of sowing seeds and fertilizers for the current Kharif sowing season.
The Chief Minister chaired a high level meeting to review the implementation of budget programmes for the Agriculture sector.
About 1.26 lakh metric tons of DAP is available in the state as on May 31.
In all about 7.64 lakh metric tons of fertilizers are available in the State.There is no problem to meet the needs of the State.
But the officials should oversee the supply and stocks and take all precautionary measures against creation of artificial scarcity, Bommai ordered.
Similarly about 7.81 lakh quintals of sowing seeds are available, which is more than the requirement.
But stringent precautionary measures need to be taken to curb the menace of spurious sowing seeds.
Action should be taken to avoid any lapses in this regard.Stringent measures should be taken against suppliers of spurious seeds,the Chief Minister instructed.
State has set a sowing target of 114.54 lakh hectares for the Kharif season.Apart from this, the Chief Minister wanted atleast 1 lakh hectares of dry lands and marsh lands to be made cultivable this year.
Agriculture minister BC Patil, Chief Secretary Vandita Sharma and other senior officials were present.
