Rajasthan to provide Rs 444 cr for barbed wire fencing on agri fields

The Rajasthan government has decided to provide Rs 444.40 crore to one lakh farmers for putting up barbed wire fences to protect crops from stray animals, according to an official statement on Saturday.

Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has approved the proposal to construct a total of 40 million meters of barbed wire fencing. He has also approved reducing the minimum limit for fencing to 0.50 hectares due to the small size of the holdings of the farmers belonging to Scheduled Tribe communities.

Following this, community participation in fencing will now get more grant than before.

In the 2023-24 financial year, about Rs 444.40 crore will be spent on fencing. Of this, Rs 391 crore will be borne from the Farmers Welfare Fund and Rs 25 crore from the state scheme 'Grant for crop protection through wire fencing'. The remaining Rs 28.40 crore will be spent from the National Food Security Mission, the statement said.

Notably, Gehlot had in the 2023-24 budget announced to continue the wire fencing grant under the Rajasthan Crop Protection Mission.