Centre to give Rs 600 cr interim relief to Maha farmers

The Centre has decided to grant Rs 600 crore as interim relief for Maharashtra farmers whose Kharif crops were affected due to heavy rains in October, Minister of State for Agriculture Purushottam Rupala said in Rajya Sabha on Friday.

Responding to queries during Question Hour, he said crops have been affected due to rains not only in Maharashtra but in many other states as well. "Based on the first request made by the state government, we sent a delegation to assess the damage. Based on inputs of the delegation, we have taken an interim decision to grant Rs 600 crore to help farmers. This is not the final one," he said in the Upper House. There were rains in Maharashtra during November as well.

The Centre is awaiting details from the state government on the extent of damage to crops, he said and added the action will be taken for release of grant after getting information from the state. Replying to another query on the central scheme Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN), the minister said about Rs 3,100 crore has been made available to Maharashtra.

The funds are released after the state government certifies eligible farmers.