Farmers can now form cooperatives, sign MoUs to practise cooperative farming: Rajya Sabha told

In order to facilitate farmers to increase their income, the government has said that they can now practise cooperative farming by forming groups as the Center has made a law that promotes such type of farming, said Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Purshottam Rupala in the Rajya Sabha today.

The MoS for Agriculture said the law has been sent to states and farmers can now form cooperatives or sign MoUs to practise cooperative farming. 

During Question Hour, the minister told RS members, "Farmers can now officially get together and form MoUs and Farmer Producer Organisation (FPOs) to do cooperative farming as per the new law," while responding to a question on what steps the government is initiating to promote cooperative farming.

Rupala said the state and central governments will also offer all kind of help to such farmers for doing cooperative farming as per the new law.

Earlier in a written reply on whether the area under cultivation is decreasing in the country, Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar replied in the negative, adding "As per latest data on land use statistics for the year 2014-15, cultivated land/area under cultivation has remained stagnant at around 155 million hectares during 2012-13 to 2014-15."