Govt raises farm sector allocation by 5% to Rs 15,000cr

The government has raised the allocation for agriculture by five per cent to about Rs 15,000 crore for the next fiscal to give a fillip to the sector that gives bread to about 60 per cent of the country's population.

Total allocation for the agriculture sector has been pegged at Rs 14,999.13 crore for the coming fiscal against Rs 14,303.08 crore in 2008-09.

Grants for the Department of Agriculture and Co-operation (DAC) have been raised to Rs 10,651.45 crore for the coming fiscal from Rs 10,327.54 crore in 2008-09.

The total allocation for DAC comprises plan expenditure of Rs 10,093.30 crore and non-plan spend of Rs 558.15 crore.

Of the total plan outlay of Rs 10,093.30 crore, central plan accounts for Rs 6,900 crore, while state plan is pegged at Rs 3,179.30 crore and Union Territory at Rs 14 crore.

Presenting the Interim Budget, stand-in Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee said the UPA government has given "focussed attention" to the farm sector and highlighted that "in the period between 2003-04 and 2008-09, our government increased the Plan allocation for agriculture by 300 per cent".

The grant for the Department of Agricultural Research and Education (DARE) has been increased to Rs 3,241.40 crore from Rs 2,960 crore this fiscal. The allocation consists of the Plan spend of Rs 1,760 crore and non-Plan expenditure of Rs 1,481.40 crore.