Yogi holds video conference with DMs

LUCKNOW: Chief minister Yogi Adityanath held a video conference with district magistrates on Monday to sensitise them on the new direct cash transfer scheme under which small and marginal farmers will be paid Rs 6,000 per year. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will launch the scheme nationally from Gorakhpur on February 24. The scheme, known as Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi, was announced in the Union Budget.

Since the scheme has been lunched retrospectively from December 2018, the government has decided to transfer Rs 2, 000 for December 2018 to March 2019 period to beneficiaries before the election code of conduct comes into effect, possibly in March.

Agriculture production commissioner Prabhat Kumar said, “The chief minister reviewed preparations for the launch of the scheme and directed the district magistrates to identify beneficiaries keeping in view the inclusion and exclusion criteria and ensure their data was fed.”

He said data of 20 lakh eligible farmers had already been fed. In UP, there are around 2 crore farm households of which 80% are small and marginal having up to 2 hectares land or less each.