Chief Minister Dr. Pramod Sawant on Friday informed the Goa Legislative Assembly that the state government is ramping up support for the agriculture and horticulture sectors through a range of subsidies and initiatives focused on mechanisation, traditional farming methods, and the promotion of indigenous crops like the Mankurad mango.
Addressing the House, Dr. Sawant said the number of Kisan Credit Cards issued in Goa has doubled, giving farmers easier access to institutional credit. He added that government payouts to farmers, particularly in horticulture, have seen a steady rise, with increasing participation from locals drawn by the sector’s growing profitability.
A key focus of the government is the promotion of the native Mankurad mango variety. The Chief Minister revealed that the Geographical Indication (GI) tagging process for the fruit is in its final phase. “We are encouraging more farmers to grow Mankurad mangoes,” he said, noting that the state offers subsidies of ₹2 lakh per hectare for cultivation on rocky terrain and ₹60,000 per hectare on regular farmland.
Dr. Sawant also highlighted upcoming changes to paddy cultivation support. While mechanised harvesting is already subsidised, he said the government will now consider extending subsidies to manual paddy transplantation as part of the new Agriculture Policy. Guidelines for this initiative will be framed soon, and the use of MNREGA workers in transplantation may also be explored.
Responding to a query by MLA Kedar Naik regarding the limited operation time of paddy harvesters—currently set at 1.18 hours per hectare—Agriculture Minister Ravi Naik assured that the time will be increased to 1.30 hours. He also confirmed that additional subsidies will be offered to encourage crop cultivation.