GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 19th Jan. There is a newspaper article titled “Agriculture Ministry Surrenders One Lakh Crore of Budget in Last 5 Years” that focuses on the surrender of funds without providing any comments from the Ministry and neglects to mention the government’s achievements. It is important to reiterate that the government has implemented numerous measures to ensure the welfare of farmers. The budget allocation for the Department of Agriculture & Cooperation, including DARE, has significantly increased over the years. In 2013-14, it was Rs. 27,662.67 crore, and by 2023-24, it had risen to Rs. 1,25,035.79 crore.
Three major central sector schemes, which make up approximately 80% – 85% of the Department of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare budget, are worth mentioning. The PM-KISAN scheme was launched in 2019 and has already disbursed over Rs. 2.81 lakh crore to more than 11 crore farmers through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) as of November 30, 2023. The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY), initiated in 2016, has enrolled 49.44 crore farmers and provided claims totaling over Rs. 1,46,664 crore to more than 14.06 crore farmers (provisional). Additionally, institutional credit for the agriculture sector has increased from Rs. 7.3 lakh crore in 2013-14 to Rs. 21.55 lakh crore in 2022-23. Animal husbandry and fisheries farmers can now also benefit from concessional institutional credit through KCC.
The aforementioned three major central sector schemes are entitlement-based, aiming to cover all eligible farmers. Moreover, the landholding pattern in the North Eastern region (NER) is community-based, and the percentage of cultivable land is relatively low. Consequently, the expenditure on these schemes is less than the stipulated 10% for NER states. The remaining funds are made available for the consolidated fund to be used for other schemes and departments.
The Department prepares budget estimates for various central sector and centrally sponsored schemes in consultation with stakeholders such as state governments, farmers’ representatives, and implementing agencies. Throughout the year, the estimates are adjusted based on actual expenditure, unspent balances with state governments, and the requirement of funds. In the last four years, a total of Rs. 64,900.12 crore has been saved through mandatory surrender at the Revised Estimate stage. Additionally, around Rs. 40,000 crore has been surrendered due to the mandatory allocation of 10% of the overall allocation to the North East region.
Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) and Krishionnati Yojana (KY), which are centrally sponsored schemes, are implemented by state governments. The utilization under these schemes has been low due to slow expenditure at the field level and the new procedure for just-in-time release of funds. State governments must ensure timely release of funds by contributing their share and incurring expenditure for subsequent installments. The Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare has provided sufficient funds to states that have incurred expenses to ensure the smooth implementation of all departmental schemes without any funding issues.
