KRISHNAGIRI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday interacted with farmers from six States, including Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Odisha and Madhya Pradesh, after depositing Rs 18,000 crore in the accounts of nine crore cultivators under the PM-Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-Kisan) scheme. During the virtual meet, Modi spoke to farmer M Subramani from Kodhikutlapalli village near Krishnagiri.
When asked how he managed to procure water for irrigation amid scarcity in Chennai, Subramani said that he was cultivating tomato and rose in three acres using drip irrigation method. “Earlier, I cultivated only in an acre. After switching to drip irrigation, I farmed with Rs 1.33 lakh subsidy from the government. This helped increase my income from Rs 40,000 to Rs 1.40 lakh,” he added.
Modi urged Subramani to spread the word about drip irrigation among his counterparts as it would help get high yield with less water. The interaction was live translated by Revenue Official Ramesh at Hosur Sub- Collector Office. Surprised by Ramesh’s fluency in Hindi, the Prime Minister asked how he learnt the language. The official said he served in the Indian Army.
The meeting was also attended by Krishnagiri Collector Dr V Jaya Chandra Bhanu Reddy and Horticulture Department staff. It may be noted that small and marginal farmers are provided Rs 6,000 per year in three equal instalments under the PM-Kisan scheme.