Haryana Govt offers vehicles, drones to farmers against security deposit

Parveen Arora

Shamgarh (Karnal), January 15

The state government is promoting drone technology in agriculture by providing training to farmers to become drone pilots. With the assistance of Indian Farmers’ Fertiliser Cooperative Limited (IFFCO), the government is offering drones along with vehicles, secured by a deposit of Rs 1 lakh, to individuals trained as drone pilots.

Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister JP Dalal shared this information on Monday during an interaction with The Tribune on the sidelines of the valedictory function of the Third Potato Expo-cum-Conclave-2024 at the Potato Training Centre (PTC) in Shamgarh village.

“The state government is committed to the welfare of farmers. We are integrating technology into farming to save time and money. The farmers are being trained to operate drones, and with the support of IFFCO, the government has started providing vehicles with drones to trained drone pilots. So far, we have distributed 10 vans with drones, and 125 drone pilots, including 25 women, will receive these vehicles with the drones. The women pilots will receive this facility free of charge,” said Dalal.

He also revealed that the state government had planned to provide subsidies to the drone pilots for purchasing drones and would soon launch a portal for this purpose. The government has set a target to spray nano urea on one lakh acres across the state using the drones, and this target can be expanded to two lakh acres, he added.

Dalal highlighted that the Haryana Government had increased the agriculture Budget from Rs 800 crore in 2014 to Rs 3,900 crore.

Addressing the farmers, he announced the launch of a medical facility accessible with just one dial for livestock farmers, similar to the 112 number service.

“The state government is introducing a new medical facility for livestock accessible by dialing a centralised number, with its headquarters in Panchkula. The service will start soon, providing a vehicle equipped with a doctor, medicines and other medical facilities for the livestock,” said Dalal.

Expressing satisfaction with the production of potato seeds in Haryana, he praised the efforts of the Potato Training Centre (PTC) and urged the farmers to adopt varieties developed by the centre.

“Farmers are embracing new agriculture techniques, making the state a leader in agriculture. The state government plans to establish an international market on approximately 550 acres in Gannaur,” he added.

Dalal calls Rahul’s campaign ‘Congress Todo Yatra’

• Agriculture Minister Dalal criticised Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra, referring to it as ‘Congress Todo Yatra’ (Congress-breaking journey). He said every party had the right to devise strategies for improvement, but as soon as Rahul started his journey, “senior leaders of his own party leave him”.
• Regarding the Congress’s decision to not attend the ‘Pran Pratishtha’ celebration of Lord Ram’s idol on January 22, Dalal said the Congress had described Lord Ram as an imaginary figure. He also took a jibe at the state’s ‘Ghar Ghar Congress’ campaign.