Expressing concern over the debt burden on farmers, President A P J Abdul Kalam on Monday said the government would restore the health of rural credit system and step up public investment in agriculture.

The President said the government was committed to increasing the flow of agricultural credit, dovetailing farm insurance schemes, introduce special programme on dryland farming, offer remunerative prices for farm produce, properly implement minimum wage laws for farm labour, introduce land reforms and fully realise the country's irrigation potential.

Highlights of UPA's economic agenda

Addressing the joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament, the President said the government would ensure a significant increase in agri-credit flow and also see that coverage of small and marginal farmers by institutional lending expands substantially.

Public investment in agriculture will be stepped up significantly with focus on the backward and poor regions so as to substantially boost farmers' income, he added.

"The entire rural credit system will be restored to health. Government is sensitive to the debt-burden of the farmers and will take suitable steps in this regard," Kalam said.

Farm insurance schemes will be made more responsive to the needs of the farmers. The government will actively encourage investment in agro-processing industries to reduce wastage and facilitate value-addition benefiting the farmers, the President added.

The agenda further said that special programmes for dryland farming and intensive agricultural development of districts in arid and semi-arid regions would be introduced.

Kalam said watershed development programme lying dormant for the past few years would also be revived.

"My government will ensure farmers nationwide receive fair and remunerative prices and the government agencies, entrusted with the responsibility for procurement and marketing, pay special attention to farmers in poor and backward states and districts".

The President asserted that negotiations at the World Trade Organization would be such as to fully protect the interests and livelihood of the farming community, which is the backbone of the country.

The government will ensure proper implementation of the minimum wage laws for farm labour and effective measures will be taken to protect the interest of all agricultural workers, he said, adding, the process of land reforms will be speeded up and efforts to distribute surplus productive land to the landless will be redoubled.

The United Progressive Alliance government also promised to accelerate the development and use of the country's irrigation potential. Starting with peninsular rivers, the environmental, ecological and techno-economic feasibility will be carefully examined and all ongoing irrigation projects will be completed in a time-bound manner, the economic agenda stated.

All funds for poverty alleviation and rural development will be directly credited to the panchayat bodies to enable them to serve the people better. Appropriate guidelines will also be prepared for effective utilisation of such funds.