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Declare locust menace natural disaster: Rajasthan Agriculture Minister urges Centre

With giant swarms of locusts destroying the crops of farmers, Rajasthan Agriculture Minister Lalchand Kataria has urged Center to declare the menace of locusts a natural disaster.

The minister held a video conference with the Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Friday and demanded Centre to release the first instalment of centrally-sponsored schemes at the earliest.

Giving information about crop loss in the state due to locusts, Kataria asked the Agriculture Insurance Company to pay the outstanding insurance claim of Rs 380 crore for Kharif-2019 of farmers as soon as possible.

The minister claimed that the first instalment of most of the centrally-sponsored schemes for the year 2020-21 has not yet been released and the first instalment of all schemes should be released immediately to the state in view of the interest of farmers.  

Hanuman Beniwal, Rashtriya Loktantrik Party (RLP) MP from Rajasthan’s Nagaur has also written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging him to declare locust attack a national disaster and provide relief to the farmers.

(With agency inputs)

Source: dnaindia.com