Chennai: Including the item of 'pest attack of severe nature' as one of the natural disasters, eligible for relief under State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF), the state government has informed the Madras high court that it has sanctioned Rs 186.25 crore from SDRF towards input subsidy to the affected farmers identified from 17 districts, whose maize crops were damaged due to attack of Fall Armyworm during the year 2018-2019 and the amount would be disbursed to them within four weeks.
Recording this submission made by additional government pleader E.Manoharan, a division bench comprising Justices S.Manikumar and Subramonium Prasad directed the additional chief secretary to disburse the funds immediately. The district collector and other authorities are further directed to disburse the relief fund under the SDRF, to the farmers identified, and that the same should be completed, as assured before this court, within four weeks, from July 5, the bench added.
The bench gave the directives while disposing of a PIL filed by N.K.Selvaraj of Salem district, a farmer and the district secretary of Tamilnadu Agriculural Sangam, which sought a direction to authorities to disburse monetary relief to farmers in Salem district affected by loss of crop due to Fall Armyworm in July 2018.
Petitioner's counsel S.Sathia Chandran submitted that during the Tamil month of Aadi (July) 2018, thousands of farmers in Salem district started cultivating maize/corn. However, unfortunately, the crop was affected by Fall Armyworm, which completely destroyed the crop in entirety to an extent of 10,000 hectares of lands in Salem district, leaving thousands of farmers in total distress. State administration took note of the same and proposed to provide monetary relief to the affected farmers in this regard. Subsequently, the affected farmers submitted the particulars and documents required along with the proforma given to them, with a hope to get relief at the earliest. However, despite their repeated representations to the authorities, there was no response. Hence, the petitioner has filed the present PIL, Sathia Chandran added.
The bench said going through the material on record, it was of the view that their grievance was genuine and thus notice has been ordered. The deputy director of agriculture filed a counter affidavit. On July 3, 2019, when the matter came up for hearing, it had passed an interim order, On July 5, 2019, when the matter came up for hearing, additional government pleader E.Manoharan submitted that government has issued a GO dated July 3, 2019, for inclusion of the item of pest attack of severe nature as one of the natural disasters, eligible for relief under SDRF, for sanction of input subsidy to the affected farmers and to adopt the procedure currently being followed for sanctioning input subsidy under SDRF norms. He further submitted that government has also issued GO dated July 4, 2019, sanctioning Rs 186, 25, 07, 782 under the SDRF to the farmers affected. Details of the farmers affected in various districts, funds allocated to the said districts were more fully described in the GO dated July 4, 2019, the bench added.
The bench said on instructions, AGP further submitted that disbursement of the above said amount of Rs 186, 25, 07, 782 to the farmers identified from 17 districts would be done within four weeks. Submission of AGP was recorded, the bench added.
