Kesinga: Even though there are eight Farmers’ Information and Advisory Centres (FIAC) in Kesinga block of Kalahandi district, the farmers of the block do not get training regarding farming and new technology, thanks to the contractor’s apathy.
According to sources, in a bid to give training and grassroot level information regarding farming and new technology to the farmers, Odisha government has started eight FIACs in Kesinga block. These centres were constructed in Balasi, Paralsinga, Kandel, Kikia, Chancher, Adhamunda, Fatkamal and Turlakhaman gram panchayats.
The contractor constructed eight buildings two years back but they were not handed over to the agriculture department for which the centres have been lying unused for years now.
Due to some reasons not fully known, the contractor is not handing over the constructed buildings to the agricultural department for more than two years now and the newly built houses now appear like haunted houses.
Under Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana, the state government had started the construction work back in 2018-19 financial years.
The residents of the block also alleged that the state government has planned to construct 26 FIAC buildings out of which only eight FIAC centres have been constructed.
The state government had decided to construct the FIAC, in bid to facilitate the block farmers with training centre, laboratory and cold store. However, due to careless attitude of the contractor and agricultural department officers, the fully-constructed FIACs have given no benefit to the farmers of the block.
As there are no cold stores in the block, the farmers are facing issues to store their produce due to which they are forced to sell their produce at a very less price to the middlemen. The farmers are also facing difficulties in gaining knowledge about various farming-related activities.
When asked, agricultural officer Janaki Ballav Mohapatra said, “The construction company has not handed over the constructed building for which we have not started any training programme at the centres”.
PNN