45 agriculture awards distributed

Imphal: Manipur agriculture minister Oinam Lukhoi Singh on Tuesday handed over various awards in different categories under Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA) scheme at farmers’ training Hall, Directorate of Agriculture here.

Altogether 45 numbers of awards were handed over to the awardees. The category of the awards distributed were Best State Level Farmers award, Best District level Farmers award, Best ATMA District, Award for Incentive for Exemplary Extension Work, Best ATMA Stall in the MAI-OWN Exhibition, 2021, Outstanding Award for Distinguishing Service to Farmers’ and Incentive Award for seven new districts participated in the SAF, 2021.

Total cash award of Rs 10, 30,000 were transferred to awardees through Direct Benefit Transfer by the minister during the ceremony.

The Best State and District Level Farmers were selected based on the success story submitted by the Concerned Project Director ATMA Districts. Best ATMA Districts were also selected based on the activities/works done in all the agriculture and allied sectors as per ATMA guidelines. The Award for Incentive for Exemplary Extension Work were selected based on the performance among the ATMA Extension Functionaries during the year with a view to bridge the gap of lab and land, an official statement said.

Such recognitions will encourage the farmers to increase their production in a specialised manner under the supervision of an efficient scheme officers and officials. In this way, the agriculture sector and farmers will become self-reliant and contribute to the economy of the state, Lukhoi said.

With the advancement of technology and specialised skills in the agriculture sectors, there will be massive improvement in the production of the agricultural products and also its allied sectors, he added.

Citing the various proposals submitted by the officials of the ATMA scheme, he said since the government is always committed for the welfare of the people, innovative ideas and proposals will be taken into consideration.

Agriculture director Laltanpuii Vanchhong informed that the State Agricultural Management Extension and Training Institute (SAMETI-Manipur) has been organising the State Agriculture Fair since 2008. This year, the State Agricultural Fair, 2021 was organized by the SAMETI- Manipur as a part of MAI-OWN Exhibition, 2021 from March 16- 22 at Imphal. The main objectives of the fair are to disseminate the latest technology, showcase the innovative activities and products etc., she added.

Commissioner, agriculture department (Link), Gyan Prakash Singh, project officers, officials of the department were part of the ceremony.
Support to State Extension Programme for Extension Reforms known as ATMA Scheme is a continuous Centrally Sponsored Scheme implemented in the state since 2005-06 and it covers 9 districts and 60 blocks, the official statement said.