A few years ago, the entire South Garo Hills district was selected by the Centre for implementing the National Food for Work Programme, which seeks to generate employment and provide food security. It also aims to create assets in 150 most backward districts of the country.
asThe pace of implementation of the programme would be accelerated in the days to come and the social security net will continue to be made available to the people through old-age pension, family and maternity benefit schemes,a? an official said.
It may be noted that Garo Hills has some of the poorest villages in the country as the tribals there still practice a?jhuma (slash and burn) cultivation which gives little returns. In the absence of basic facilities for education, healthcare and most importantly alternative avenues for income generation, it is hardly a riddle why these people are so poor.
Now, the government is focusing on employment generation among farmers and educated unemployed youth through animal husbandry and dairy farming sectors, the official added. He said the Centre-sponsored scheme for Integrated Dairy Development Project in Jaintia and West Garo Hills is being implemented, and the construction components of the project are expected to be completed soon. The government had also launched a scheme to dig 1,000 fish ponds in the rural areas of the state a few years ago.
The government has embarked on a mission to provide power-tillers in the state through a loan-cum-subsidy scheme as low-level of agricultural mechanization has been identified as one of the main reasons for poor crop yield in the state.
Recently, chief minister Mukul Sangma handed over ignition keys of power tillers to several farmers in the Garo Hills.