Vidarbha farmers should change mindset: Gadkari

While banks are routinely blamed for reluctance to extend credit to farmers,Gadkari thinks otherwise. “The banks are co-operating in providing drip irrigation finance. We must take advantage of that. And we must repay them.”

Citing example of Pune district,he said,“Pune alone produces as much milk as entire Vidarbha does. We too can do it. The need is for changing mindset. We need to train our farmers to do it the proper way. A successful venture by a few farmers will definitely have induction effect on many others.”

He observed: “We have much better soil than Israel. We get four times more rainfall. We need better technology. Our research team has manufactured a solar water pump by using German technology. Israel uses solar pumps on a large scale. If we start using them too,there will be no loadshedding in the villages.”

The BJP president announced on the occasion that while the pump manufactured by his research team costs Rs 5 lakh,he would make it available to Vidarbha farmers for Rs 2.5 lakh by deducting the government subsidy of Rs 1.5 lakh and Purti Group’s concession of Rs 1 lakh.

On his favourite subject of ethanol,Gadkari said,“Cotton and rice stalks can be used to produce ethanol that has capacity to solve the crude oil import problem of the country.”