11 crore farmer IDs created five months ahead of deadline: Minister

New Delhi, October 24 (IANS) Union Minister for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare and Rural Development, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, on Saturday said India has achieved its target of creating 11 crore Farmer IDs five months ahead of the March 31, 2027 deadline.The milestone achieved under the Digital Agriculture Mission will help benefit various schemes to be provided in a transparent manner, Chouhan said in an X post.Further, a statement from the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare said the Farmer ID acts as a unique digital identity to give farmers transparent, efficient and timely access to government schemes, bank credit, crop insurance and disaster relief while reducing paperwork and repeated verification.Over 6 crore farmers across the country have so far received direct benefits under various schemes through the Farmer ID-based service delivery system. A verified farmer database was linked with agricultural services, which eliminated fraud and the need for duplicate verification.The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare, state governments and field-level officials worked in coordination to achieve it five months ahead of schedule, the minister said.Chouhan said the Farmer ID system would significantly reduce the need for farmers to repeatedly visit government offices and banks or submit the same documents for different schemes. Farmers often had to provide documents repeatedly to access various benefits, resulting in a loss of both time and money.States and Union Territories are also taking specific steps, in accordance with applicable rules, to bring tenant farmers and actual cultivators onto the digital platformThe initiative will strengthen delivery of services such as Kisan Credit Cards, Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana claims and Minimum Support Price procurement, the statement said.The digital system will help eliminate the role of intermediaries in the procurement process and ensure that farmers receive the full value due for their produce.