Farmers can now form cooperatives

Farmers in the country can now practise cooperative farming by forming groups and the Center has made a law that promotes such type of farming, the government Friday informed the Rajya Sabha.

Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Purshottam Rupala said the law has been sent to states and farmers can now form cooperatives or sign MoUs to practise cooperative farming.

"Farmers can now officially get together and form MoUs and Farmer Producer Organisation (FPOs) to do cooperative farming as per the new law," he told members during Question Hour.

The minister was responding to a question on what steps the government is initiating to promote cooperative farming.

Rupala said the state and central governments will also offer all kind of help to such farmers for doing cooperative farming as per the new law.

Earlier in a written reply on whether the area under cultivation is decreasing in the country, Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar replied in the negative.

"As per latest data on land use statistics for the year 2014-15, cultivated land/area under cultivation has remained stagnant at around 155 million hectares during 2012-13 to 2014-15," he said in his reply.