the goan I network
VASCO
Cortalim ZP Member Anton Vas on Saturday appealed to the State government not to reduce subsidy given to farmers, even as he insisted that the same should be reverted to 75 per cent from the recently announced 50 per cent.
Vas was speaking to reporters at a function organised by Velsao Pale Xetkarancho Association (VPXA) to felicitate him for offering free harvesting and other farming machinery free of cost to around 135 farmers for the last several years through the Cortalim
Farmers Club (CFC) established by him.
“Being a farmer myself, I have known the difficulty of farmers and always promoted the activity in the State in every possible way by offering machines, subsidies and incentives.”
“The CFC was established six years ago and has been helping around 900 farmers of Cortalim constituency twice a year by offering machinery for farming activity.”
“The CFC has also been buying the farmers’ produce to make farming an alternative profession for the youth who are shunning the activity.”
“The government wants to promote farming but has recently brought down the subsidy from 75 per cent to 50 per cent. I don’t know why the subsidy is reduced. All I want is for the government to reinstate the 75 per cent subsidy so that farmers get maximum benefit,” said Vas.
He informed that the CFC had also decided to give machines free of cost to all farmers in Cortalim constituency.
“We having been offering free service to Cortalim, Velsao and Quelossim villages but have, so far, charged nominal fees to Cansaulim farmers as their fields are huge.”
“Now that loans on our machines were cleared this year, the CFC will henceforth give farming machinery free to all farmers in Cortalim constituency twice a year for growing Kharif and Rabi crops,” informed the Cortalim ZP member.
“Besides offering tractors, harvesters, power tillers and seeds, the CFC has also been offering hearse vans, three mobile morgues and other amenities to the public,” he added.
VPXA President and ex-panch Roquezinho D’Souza said the harvesting machine was provided on a request made by the association because many farmers had expressed the dearth of labourers. “Today, many want to return to farming and these machines are really helpful. People have realised that farming is beneficial and farmlands are now being revived,” said D’Souza.
