Karnataka - Bangalore

`Raitha Mitra Pustaka' in the offing

Special Correspondent

BANGALORE: As part of the State's new agriculture policy, the Agriculture Department will either, on its own or through an outside agency, gather all details about every farmer's land holding, the type of crop he grows, the fertilizer he uses, extent of land, status of the farmer, etc. Agriculture Minister Bandeppa Kashampur told The Hindu that this information would be computerised with one copy being retained by the Agriculture Department and another printed and handed over to the farmer in the form of a book.

Called the "Raitha Mitra Pustaka", the book will eventually become the farmer's "Bible", enabling him to even collect crop insurance, seeds subsidy, etc. In other words, small and marginal farmers will need not approach officials to certify them as small or marginal when they collect crop insurance, seed or other government subsidies.

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