Untitled Quiz

Policy Note 2024-2025

• This document is a policy note from the Government of Tamil Nadu, Agriculture - Farmers Welfare Department, Demand No. 5, for the year 2024-2025.
• The note highlights the importance of the agricultural sector in Tamil Nadu.
• The author, Thiru. M.R.K. Pannerselvam, Hon'ble Minister for Agriculture - Farmers Welfare, emphasizes the vital role farmers play in the state's economy.
• The note cites historical context, quoting Thirukkural and Kambar's poem, to demonstrate the longstanding significance of agriculture.

Introduction

• The introduction emphasizes the self-sufficiency of farmers in producing food.
• It further notes the poem from poet Kambar, which describes how agriculture is deemed superior occupation.

Farmers' Welfare

• The document emphasizes the Government of Tamil Nadu top priority on farmers' welfare.
• Efforts are being taken to transform agriculture into a profitable enterprise, integrating new technologies and encouraging innovative approaches.
• There's a focus on enhancing productivity and profitability in agriculture, ensuring its viability.
• Recovering soil health and providing healthy food are vital to future generations.
• There's a focus on increasing the cropped area.
• The double-cropped area has increased from 2020-21 to 2022-23
• A concerted effort is being directed toward placing Tamil Nadu among the top three most productive states nationwide concerning food crops, coconut, sunflower, and commercial crops such as sugarcane and cotton.

Agricultural Development

• The government has implemented various schemes in 2023-24 to improve farmers' income and agricultural output, highlighted in the policy note.

Efforts Taken by the Government

• In 2023-24, the Mettur Dam was opened as scheduled, and the Kuruvai Package scheme was launched, with an outlay of Rs. 75.95 crore to support Kuruvai cultivation.
• Rivers and canals were desilted and irrigation facilities were improved, leading to Kuruvai cultivation across 5.599 lakh acres, the highest in 48 years.
• The Kuruvai Special Package Scheme for 2024-25 has been allocated Rs.78.67 crore to increase agricultural production and improve farmers' livelihoods.

Long Term Visions

• The Honourable Chief Minister's long-term visions for the agricultural sector, in increasing the net cropped area to top the 3 best states and doubling the area of double-cropped farms, have been achieved, driving improved results and agricultural development.

Agricultural Productivity

• Tamil Nadu maintains a significant position in agricultural output, as indicated by figures from the 2022-23 agricultural statistics.
• Grama Sabha meetings are being conducted by the Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department, showcasing transparency in scheme implementation.

NITI Aayog

• NITI Aayog's role in the global transformation towards the 2030 SDGs is noted.
• The agricultural department in Tamil Nadu is focused on achieving six of these development goals: No Poverty, Zero Hunger, and others.

Evolution of the Department

• The document showcases the history of the Agriculture Department from previous years.

Table 1.1–Status of Tamil Nadu Productivity

• This table shows the productivity rankings of major agricultural products in Tamil Nadu.

Table 1.2 - Formation of Departments

• This table details the formation and changes in various Tamil Nadu agricultural departments over time.

Table 1.3 - Land Use Pattern

• This table compares the land use pattern in different years.

Impact of Climate Change

• Efforts are being made to tackle the challenges of climate change, including coping with weather variations and combating pests and diseases.
• Increasing the amount of area cultivated is also an acknowledged objective.
• Improving the status of groundwater levels is also identified.
• There's a focus on making farming more sustainable and on encouraging diverse crop types to increase income.
• There's a recognition of the need for initiatives that result in better overall agricultural techniques, which ultimately result in a higher level of farm output.

Efforts to Improve Livelihoods

• The document references initiatives to encourage farmers' diversification into various activities to help stabilize income and livelihoods, alongside crop production (including animal husbandry, home gardening, fish farming, and so on).

Table 1.4 - Water Source Wise

• This table details water availability to farmers from different sources for irrigation and water usage.

Figure 1– Land Use Patterns

• This figure displays the different land uses in Tamil Nadu, including percentages of barren and uncultivated land and net cropped areas.

Table 1:10 - Year-Wise Distribution of Fertilisers

• This details the distribution of fertilisers in different years.

Quality Control Laboratories

• The Department is tasked with ensuring the quality of fertilizers, bio-fertilizers, and insecticides available to farmers.
• This is achieved through 14 regional-based Fertilizer Control Laboratories.
• 12 Pesticides Testing Laboratories are also in operation, including three regional, state-level coding centers and two regional Organic Fertilizer Testing Laboratories.

Soil Health Management

• Soil testing and soil improvement processes are noted in the document.
• The importance of soil health and fertility, and the measures undertaken to improve them, are highlighted.

1.8.1 Soil Testing Laboratories

• Specific actions promoting the use of soil-testing data to optimize fertility are highlighted.

Table 1.11 - Analysis of Fertilizer

• Provides data on the quality control measures employed in 2023-24.

Table 1.12 Pesticide Samples Analysis

• Data on pesticide samples analyzed in 2023-24.

Details of Bio Pesticides

• Details of Bio-pesticides that were produced.

Integrated Pest Management

• The document lists Integrated Pest Management (IPM) efforts.

Additional details about Tamil Nadu Farming

• The document notes Tamil Nadu's geographical features, population figures, agricultural area, and marginal/small farmers' landholdings.
• It includes figures related to the average area of land per farmer and the national average of land per farm.
• It is noted that in the country, Tamil Nadu ranks seventh for population among the states.