The farmers will have to bear the recurring cost of internet connection
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Hyderabad: The government exchequer will have to shell out Rs 2,000 crore to fulfil Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu’s proposal to provide tablet computers to every farmer. There are 80 lakh farmers in the state, according to official records.
The Chief Minister wants farmers to know the latest developments in the agricultural field, like soil tests, quality seeds, fertilisers and market position of the crops through satellite. If the scheme is to be implemented, it will become an additional burden to both the government and the farmers.
The Union ministry of human resource development is supplying Akash second generation tablet computers to students at a cost of Rs 1,132, but it will cost Rs 2,263 in the open market. Generally in rural areas, whole families are into agriculture. In a family, if a father and his two sons are into agriculture, all three members will be treated as farmers in government records.
There are around 50 lakh farmer families in the state. According to the Kotaiah Committee appointed by the state government on waiver of farm loans, the farmers have total 44,28,890 accounts in various banks.
The Kotaiah Committee warned the state government that if any new scheme is taken up by the government, it would add to the requirement of additional resources.
The Committee quoted the example of enhancement of pensions to Rs 1,000 and Rs 1,500 per month for old people and disabled persons respectively. In the recent past it resulted in additional resource requirement of Rs 2,048 crore for the remaining period of six months during 2014-15.
The computer tablets once given, the farmers will have to bear the recurring cost of internet connection, a minimum of Rs 400 per month.
Agriculture minister P. Pulla Rao said the idea of giving tablet computers to farmers was to make them go for allied sectors like horticulture, pisciculture. While Mr Naidu had already said that every farmer will be given a tablet computer, the minister said it is not decided whether to give these computers to each family or to each village.
( Source : dc correspondent )
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