Defending the decision of the State Cabinet to amend the Karnataka Land Reforms Act, 1961, to allow non-agricultural families to buy farm land, Agriculture Minister B.C. Patil on Friday maintained that it would help educated youth, especially agricultural graduates, taking to farming.
Speaking to reporters after inaugurating a workshop in Bengaluru for officials on preparations for kharif crops, the Minister said about four lakh agricultural graduates were coming out of agri and allied universities every year. It was not possible for all them to find jobs. In such a context, removing curbs on purchase of farm land would go a long way in attracting them to farming, he said. In turn, it would pave the way for setting up of agro industries by educated youth in villages, he added. However, farm land should not be misused for real-estate purposes, he stressed.
Mr. Patil maintained that only Karnataka had curbs related to purchase of farm land by non-agricultural families. Within a few days, the Revenue Department would frame rules for purchase of farm land by non-agricultural families, he added.
Sowing area
The minister said kharif sowing had picked up pace in the State. As against the normal kharif sowing extent of five lakh hectares for this month, the actual sowing area had touched seven lakh hectares, he pointed out.
He asked farmers to be cautious about sowing soyabean this time in the wake of indication that the crop may not give a good yield as a consequence of last year’s floods.
