The Central Ministry of Home Affairs has approved a crop compensation package of 38.06 crore rupees for farmers affected by the ethnic violence in Manipur, following a proposal from the Manipur Agriculture Department. According to R.K. Dinesh Singh, the Commissioner of the Agriculture Department, the department had submitted a proposal to the Ministry of Home Affairs for a 38.06 crore rupees package as crop compensation for the affected farmers, and the central ministry has accepted the proposal and granted the funds. He stated, "Our top priority is to expedite the process of releasing relief packages to the affected farmers as soon as possible, ideally by November at the latest."
Officials from the Agriculture Department mentioned that Manipur has been going through a period of unrest for the past five months. Additionally, the possibility of crop damage due to insufficient rainfall during the monsoon season, food insecurity, and livelihood threats to the people in the disturbed state have arisen. The state Agriculture Department had submitted a proposal to the Ministry of Home Affairs for a 38.06 crore rupees package as crop compensation for the farmers affected by violence.
Farmers' organizations, including the Loomi Shinmi Apunba Lup, claimed in an independent survey that approximately 9,719 hectares of paddy fields in the valley could be ruined due to the fear of farmers avoiding their fields because of sporadic incidents of gunfire by armed attackers from the lower hills. According to the IANS, officials estimated that the state could incur losses of around 226.50 crore rupees in the agriculture sector this year. The most significant loss is expected to be in rice production, which accounts for 93.36 percent of total agricultural and allied activities, amounting to 211.41 crore rupees, followed by losses in livestock. Read More... Today Weather
Out of the five valley districts affected by the crisis - Imphal East, Imphal West, Thoubal, Kakching, and Bishnupur - 5,288 hectares of agricultural land are the most affected, constituting 54.4 percent of the total land area of 9,719 hectares.
Bishnupur district, which shares a border with Churachandpur, has been one of the most vulnerable districts. The organization led by Mutum Churamani, which has been assessing the situation in Fubala village in the district, said, "The current situation is such that our farmers are back to where they were before. Despite the security measures, they are afraid to go to their fields for tending to paddy crops."
They mentioned that since the onset of violence in May, farmers have been hesitant to work in the fields due to the ongoing fear, especially around the foothills where sporadic incidents of gunfire occur. They said that in July, with improved security, farmers had started preparing for cultivation and sowing, but the state government has to expedite the process of releasing relief packages to address the crisis. To address the issue, the state government had also set up a state-level monitoring committee, following the advice of the committee, the Manipur government began providing security cover for agricultural activities during the monsoon kharif season. For this purpose, VVIP security cover was reduced to deploy nearly two thousand security personnel in the affected districts and requested the farming community not to venture into farming activities without proper security arrangements, given the volatile situation. Read More... Market Rates in India
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