Farmer ID must to access agri schemes from April 15

Mumbai: The state's farmers will need a Farmer Identification Number to access schemes provided by the state agriculture department from April 15. This will impact the access of farmers who do not have the ID to schemes including the PM Kisan Yojana and the state's Namo Shetkari Mahasanman Nidhi. The two schemes collectively provide Rs 12,000 to eligible farmers annually.
The state has 1.71 crore recorded farmers. Of these, roughly 1 crore have the farmer ID so far, official sources said. This means 70 lakh farmers or 41% are yet to get the ID.
The ID is part of the Centre's initiative to digitise records related to agriculture and is being implemented nationally. The ID will be linked to the agristack portal, a digital database of farmer-related data, such as land records, livestock ownership, crop patterns, and benefits availed.
This system is meant to simplify the process of identifying and verifying farmers who apply for govt benefits. To create the database, information about the farmer and his land will be taken from revenue records. The farmer's Aadhaar number will be linked to this information. Each farmer will be provided a unique farmer ID along with his land details, the state's govt resolution says. "Farmers who have not yet registered for the ID should be promptly encouraged to register on the portal. For this purpose, the assistance of Gram Krishi Vikas Samiti, CSCs, and field-level machinery should be utilised," the govt resolution says.
Asked about farmers who have not yet registered, officials said they can approach village and district-level centres with Aadhaar numbers for registration. "It is a simple process and does not take much time," said an official from the agriculture department.
But farmer groups are suspicious about the initiative. "All the data given by farmers, including their land holdings and even the seasonal crops they grow, will be available to the govt and then to corporates involved in agriculture. This initiative is not for farmers but for corporates," alleged Ajit Nawale from the Kisan Sabha.