Pursurah/Kolkata: CM Suvendu Adhikari on Thursday announced a slew of measures for Bengal’s potato farmers, including a govt guarantee to compensate them if market prices fall below Rs 1,120 per quintal and an assurance that there would be no restrictions on transporting potatoes to other states.Addressing a Krishak Samman Nidhi programme at Pursurah in Hooghly, Adhikari said govt would provide a transport subsidy of Rs 50 per quintal for potatoes sent outside Bengal by road or rail. He also announced that potato cultivation would be brought under the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana, with state govt bearing the insurance premium for farmers.“This year, 4.75 lakh quintals of potatoes have been purchased from 49 cold storages at a remunerative price of Rs 950 per quintal. I want to assure potato farmers that if the free-on-board price falls below Rs 1,120 per quintal, state govt will compensate for the gap,” he said.No vehicle carrying potatoes would be stopped at the border, Adhikari said, alleging that potato farmers had faced harassment and restrictions during the previous Trinamool govt. The CM said govt would make efforts to dispose of 27 lakh quintals of potatoes stored in cold storages by Nov 30, though the deadline could be extended till Dec 31.The CM further announced a Rs 200-per-quintal bonus for farmers selling paddy at govt mandis and said the procurement price would be gradually raised to Rs 3,100 per quintal. He also assured compensation to farmers affected by the recent floods.Adhikari also disbursed an additional Rs 3,000 annual assistance for farmers covered under PM-Kisan scheme. With the Rs 6,000 provided by Centre, more than 46 lakh farmers in Bengal would receive a total of Rs 9,000 annually, he said.CM announces ‘Bhorsha Karmasuchi’ rollout in JanCM Suvendu Adhikari announced that state govt would roll out ‘Bhorsha Karmasuchi’ in Jan. The scheme will be implemented to provide a monthly allowance to eligible educated unemployed youth from 21-45 years. Under it, Rs 3,000 monthly allowance will be given to unemployed graduates, and Rs 2,000 to others. This scheme will benefit those whose family income is less than Rs 1 lakh per year and who are not receiving benefits from any existing social protection scheme.
