389.75 LMT wheat purchased by Food Corporation of India in Rabi Marketing Season 2020-21 Posted On: 24 JUL 2020 5:56PM by PIB Delhi

The Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare, Government of India is taking several measures to facilitate the farmers and farming activities at field level during COVID 19 pandemic. There has been satisfactory progress of sowing area coverage under Kharif crops, the status of which is given as under:

Sowing Area Coverage of Kharif Crops: Rice: About 220.24 lakh ha area coverage under rice as compared to 187.70 lakh ha. during the corresponding period of last year.

Pulses: About 99.71 lakh ha area coverage under pulses as compared to 79.30 lakh ha. during the corresponding period of last year.

Coarse Cereals: About 137.13 lakh ha area coverage under coarse cereals as compared to 120.30 lakh ha. during the corresponding period of last year.

Oilseeds: About 166.36 lakh ha area coverage under oilseeds as compared to 133.56 lakh ha. during the corresponding period of last year.

Sugarcane: About 51.54 lakh ha area coverage under sugarcane as compared to 51.02 lakh ha. during the corresponding period of last year.

Jute & Mesta: About 6.94 lakh ha area coverage under jute & mesta as compared to 6.84 lakh ha. during the corresponding period of last year.

Cotton: About 118.03 lakh ha area coverage under cotton as compared to 96.35 lakh ha. during the corresponding period of last year.

Central Water Commission (CWC) has reported that the live water storage in 123 reservoirs in different parts of the country is 155% of the corresponding period of the last year. Empowering Potters’ Community a Big Step towards Inclusive Development: Shri Amit Shah Posted On: 24 JUL 2020 6:02PM by PIB Delhi

Seeking to empower and associate the marginalized potters’ community with India’s quest to become “Aatmanirbhar”, Union Home Minister Shri Amit Shah today distributed 100 electric potter wheels to 100 trained artisans under Kumhar Sashaktikaran Yojana of Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC). Shri Amit Shah distributed the electric chaaks in village Balwa under Kalol Taluka in his parliamentary constituency of Gandhinagar via video conference from New Delhi.

Lauding the Kumhar Sashaktikaran Yojana, the Home Minister said the initiative would go a long way in strengthening the marginalized potters’ community while also reviving the traditional art of pottery. He also interacted with five potters – Ashok Bhai Prajapati, Rajesh Bhai Prajapati, Jayanti Bhai Prajapati, Surekhaben Prajapati and Velji Bhai Prajapati - who have been given 10-days training by KVIC in pottery making and provided with electric chaak and other equipment to empower them.

“I am glad to see the change that has ushered in the lives of our potters. Our government in the Centre is always concerned for better livelihood of the Prajapati community. The distribution of electric chaak is a gift from our Prime Minister to the people of Gujarat,” Shri Amit Shah said.

The Home Minister assured the potters that arrangements, including tie-up with the railway, will be made to provide proper marketing channel for selling their products. Shri Amit Shah appreciated the efforts of KVIC in providing sustainable employment opportunities to the weaker sections through its schemes.

“Kumhar Sashaktikaran Yojana is one such step towards making the potters’ community “Aatmanirbhar”. I am hopeful that KVIC will continue to work for the benefit of marginalized sections,” he said.

KVIC Chairman Shri Vinai Kumar Saxena informed that more than 17,000 electric chaaks have so far been distributed across the country benefiting nearly 70,000 people of the potters’ community.

“This has impacted the lives of potters in a big way. With electric chaaks, the production of clay items has increased by manifold. At present, nearly 2 crore kulhars are made every day across the country. Potters are successfully selling these kulhars at 400 railway stations which is a perfect marketing platform for them,” Saxena said.

It may be noted that several regions of Gujarat, particularly Kutch and Saurashtra, are well-known for the traditional pottery art. Since the launch of Kumhar Sashaktikaran Yojana in 2018, the KVIC has trained nearly 750 potters from different villages in Gujarat.

Besides training them in pottery making, KVIC has also distributed them with electric potter wheels and other equipment like blunger machines for mixing of clay. This has eliminated drudgery from the process of pottery making and also resulted in increasing the production and higher income of potters by 3-4 times.

In Gandhinagar district, KVIC has trained 100 potters and distributed 100 electric potter wheels and 10 blunger machines. The average income of potters under Kumhar Sashaktikaran Yojana has gone up from nearly Rs 3000 per month to nearly Rs 10,000 per month.

Strengthening the traditional art of the country is the dream of PM Modi and everyone should contribute with their skill-sets to make India Aatmanirbhar- Shri Amit Shah

By connecting our artists brothers and sisters to technology, we can make their lives easier and also increase their production capacity - Union Home Minister

Proper marketing arrangements, including tie-up with the Railways, will be made for the potters’ community to sell their products - Shri Amit Shah Posted On: 24 JUL 2020 7:46PM by PIB Delhi

Seeking to empower and associate the marginalized potters’ community with India’s quest to become “Aatmanirbhar”, the Union Home Minister Shri Amit Shah distributed 100 electric potter wheels to 100 trained artisans under the Kumhar Sashaktikaran Yojana of the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC). Shri Amit Shah distributed the electric potter wheels in his Parliamentary constituency (Gandhinagar Lok Sabha) via Video Conference from New Delhi.

Lauding the Kumhar Sashaktikaran Yojana, the Home Minister said the initiative would go a long way in strengthening the marginalized potters’ community by incorporating technology to improve productivity while also reviving the traditional art of pottery. He also interacted with five potters who have been trained by KVIC in pottery making and provided with electric potter wheels and other equipment for their future endeavours.

“I am glad to see the change that has been ushered in the lives of our potters. Modi government at the Centre is always concerned for better livelihood of the Prajapati community. The distribution of electric chaak is a gift from our Prime Minister to the people of Gujarat. This will make their lives easierand also increase their production capacity” Shri Amit Shah said.

“Strengthening the traditional art of the country is the dream of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji and everyone should contribute with their skill-sets to make India Aatmanirbhar. The Modi Government has already undertaken exemplary initiatives towards this end. The KVIC’s Kumhar Sashaktikaran Yojana is a significant step in this direction,” he added.

The Home Minister assured the potters that arrangements will be provided for selling of their products, including tie-up with the Railways and proper marketing channels. Shri Amit Shah appreciated the efforts of KVIC in providing sustainable employment opportunities to the weaker sections through its schemes. “Kumhar Sashaktikaran Yojana is one such step towards making the potters’ community “Aatmanirbhar”. I am hopeful that KVIC will continue to work for the benefit of marginalized sections,” he added.

In Gandhinagar district, KVIC has trained 100 potters from 14 villages and distributed 100 electric potter wheels and 10 blunger machines. The average income of potters under the Kumhar Sashaktikaran Yojana has gone up from nearly Rs 3,000 per month to nearly Rs 12,000 per month.