Alipurduar, Oct. 8 -- "The previous government only created deficits; we will create surpluses," state Agriculture minister Dudhkumar Mandal said in Alipurduar on Thursday after reviewing the functioning of the Agriculture department.
Mandal held a meeting with senior Agriculture department officials at the district administrative building, Dooars Kanya, to discuss ways to make farming more profitable and modern. He said he had also interacted with farmers from Alipurduar and Cooch Behar to understand their problems and explore the region's agricultural potential.
The meeting discussed crop patterns suited to local soil conditions, modern farming technology, quality seeds and fertilisers, farm machinery, agricultural loans, crop insurance and irrigation. Mandal also sought suggestions on encouraging farmers to take up profitable cultivation throughout the year.
He stressed on the use of solar energy to address irrigation problems. "In areas where there are electricity-related problems, the state government will show farmers the way to develop systems through which they can use solar energy to easily irrigate their fields," he said.
Mandal alleged that the previous government had failed to carry out necessary recruitment in the Agriculture department for 15 years. He said the present government had been in office for four months, adding that Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari had announced fresh recruitment across departments.
The minister also highlighted the shortage of cold-storage facilities in Alipurduar and said he would discuss the issue with state minister Dilip Ghosh.
He stressed linking agriculture with agro-based industries to increase farmers' income beyond cultivation alone.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.