"If subsidies were handed directly to farmers, it could reshape Indian agriculture": VP Dhankhar

Jaipur (Rajasthan) [India], June 30 (ANI): Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Monday pitched for a shift in India's agricultural subsidy framework, urging that government subsidies be transferred directly to farmers, rather than routed through intermediaries or departmental mechanisms.
"If subsidies were handed directly to farmers, it could reshape Indian agriculture," said Vice President Dhankhar
The Vice President cited the success of such models in countries like the United States, where farmers independently decide how best to use financial support.
Addressing a gathering at an event in Jaipur, the Vice President acknowledged the efforts of the government under the PM-Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme, under which each eligible farmer family receives Rs 6,000 annually.
"Under the Prime Minister's Kisan Samman Nidhi, farmers receive 6000 rupees, which is a significant start. About 60,000 crore rupees go to farmers annually. There are 10 crore farmer families, but if the subsidy the government provides to farmers reaches them in full, each farmer family could get more than 30,000 rupees every year in place of this subsidy," said the Vice President.
He stressed that if the total subsidies provided by the government -- particularly the Rs 3 lakh crore allocated annually for fertiliser -- were handed directly to farmers, it could dramatically reshape Indian agriculture.
"The government is spending 3 lakh crore -- on fertilizer subsidies. If that is given directly to farmers, natural farming, organic farming -- the farmer will make that decision. We will avoid chemicals and pesticides, and a new approach will emerge," Dhankhar said.
He highlighted that in the United States, agricultural subsidies are directly transferred to farmers without any bureaucratic filtering, enabling them to make independent decisions such as investing in cattle for natural manure or selecting the type of fertiliser.
"Our thinking should move in this direction. In America, the aid farmers receive goes entirely to the farmers. There is no middleman, no government machinery involved. The farmer decides -- which fertilizer to buy or whether to purchase livestock so that manure can be used and other benefits can be gained.What is the result? In America, the average annual income of a typical household is less than the average income of a farmer family. The farmer family's income is higher," he stated.
Addressing the gathering, the Vice President also praised Rajasthan and said, "The identity of Rajasthan's land lies in Maharana Pratap and Maharaja Surajmal. Recent events have once again brought their valor to mind -- when a fierce and precise counterstrike was carried out on enemy terrorist bases."
Referring to the retaliatory military action against the Pahalgam attack under Operation Sindoor, Dhankhar said, "The precise attack in Bahawalpur and Muridke was a clear message that terrorism will not be tolerated under any circumstances. It was also declared that this is just the beginning -- this campaign will continue until terrorism is completely eradicated.
"It was demonstrated to the world that within international borders, in a major province, with the aid of technology, our BrahMos missiles destroyed terrorist bases -- while also ensuring that no innocent person was harmed," said Vice President Dhankhar. (ANI)