Pandharpur fodder planting to get subsidy of up to Rs 1.55 lakh on public land

The rains failed this year. Kharif crops withered and hopes for the rabi crop have also dimmed. Farmers now face the big task of saving their livestock as well as their families. To provide green fodder for animals and work for village labourers, the state government has extended a special fodder plantation scheme. A revised order was issued on November 6 to give subsidy for fodder crops such as maize, jowar, bajra, Napier grass and fenugreek grass under the Viksit Bharat Rozgar and Ajeevika Guarantee Mission.

Under the scheme, a subsidy of Rs 1,21,815 will be given for planting fodder on private land. On public land the amount goes up to Rs 1,55,003. The scheme is expected to support livestock during the drought and to give work to labourers.

Dr Shubham Agwane, chairman of the Pandharpur Panchayat Samiti, has appealed to all livestock owners in the taluka to plant fodder and take advantage of the scheme. Solapur district has received only 51 per cent of its average rainfall this monsoon. As a result, kharif crops suffered heavy damage, and standing crops also withered for want of water.

There is not enough rain for the rabi season either, so the production of green fodder is also at risk. The district has a large livestock population, and arranging fodder for it has become a serious challenge for farmers. Livestock owners are troubled by the question of how to keep their animals alive. The government has tried to provide relief by issuing a separate revised order.

The scheme approves the cultivation of maize, jowar, bajra, Napier grass, fenugreek grass, lemongrass (lahsun ghas), jowar multi-cut and bajra multi-cut. Fodder can be grown on government grazing land as well as on private farms. The aim is not merely to set up fodder depots. It is to raise green fodder production in the village itself and permanently ease the shortage, so that farmers are not forced to sell animals for want of fodder.

As per the provisions, the subsidy per hectare is Rs 35,505 for bajra, Rs 42,778 for jowar, Rs 76,000 for Napier grass, Rs 1,13,290 for lahsun grass and Rs 51,000 for jowar multi-cut. A subsidy is also provided for bajra multi-cut.

Along with fodder production, rural labourers will get employment. Wages for 245 person-days have been fixed for fodder planting per acre, and Rs 77,665 of this will be credited to labourers' accounts. A fund of Rs 44,150 may be available for land preparation, seed, manure and irrigation. The list of works includes clearing the land, ploughing, rotavator work, making furrows, seed and seed treatment, sowing by the token method, manure management, watering six times, weeding, pest management, harvesting, chaffing of maize, making silage and filling sacks. These works will provide 95 days of employment.

Priority under the scheme will go to small and marginal farmers, farmers from Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, and women farmers. A farmer must have at least 50 gunthas to one acre of land for planting fodder, and minimum irrigation facilities for the crop are also necessary.

Interested farmers must apply in the prescribed form to the rozgar sevak or gramsevak of their gram panchayat. The application must be accompanied by a copy of the land records (khasra-khatauni), a certificate of account details, an Aadhaar card, a copy of the bank passbook and a job card.

Dr Agwane said saving livestock in a drought is everyone's responsibility. He said proper planning of fodder planting is necessary to deal with the fodder shortage ahead. He appealed to all farmers and livestock owners in Pandharpur taluka to plant crops such as maize, jowar and fenugreek grass and make the fullest use of the subsidy available under the employment guarantee scheme.