Jharkhand launches tractor renting portal for farmers, state owned organic brand launched

RANCHI: Poor and marginal farmers in Jharkhand will now be able to rent tractors and farm equipment at low prices for ploughing their land and harvesting.
Union agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh and Jharkhand chief minister Raghubar Das on Thursday launched JFarm Services. A mobile application, JFarm Services will pool approximately 12,000 tractors across 24 districts of Jharkhand and rent it out to farmers through mobile application and a toll-free number for tilling their lands for sowing.
Speaking to TOI, an official of Chennai based Tractor and Farm Equipment Limited (TAFE), said JFarm Services is their corporate social responsibility initiative.“Similar initiatives are underway in Madhya Pradesh Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Bihar and Odisha,” the official added.
While the state government did not elaborate on how the services will be operationalized here, TAFE said they are in the process of identifying districts where it will be started in the first phase. "Farmers can hire tractors and equipment via the JFarm Services through mobile application or a toll-free number," TAFE CEO and chairman Mallika Srinivasan said.
The state government also launched Jaivik Jharkhand, its own brand for packaging and selling organic produces from the state.
The foundation stones for 50 projects were laid in Thursday’s event. The state government said the projects, to come up in 13 districts, are expected to draw investments to the tune of Rs 300 crore and are focused on food processing, cattle feed and other areas. They are expected to employ over 5,000 people once operational.
This was the fifth ground-breaking ceremony of investment proposals fetched by Jharkhand government on or after the Momentum Jharkhand Global Investors Summit, held in February 2017. The government had claimed it had inked MoUs worth Rs 3.1 lakh crore at the summit.
The first ceremony was held in Ranchi in May 2017 when the foundations of 21 projects worth Rs 710 crore were laid. The second ceremony was held in Jamshedpur last August where the foundations of 74 projects worth Rs 2,184 crore were laid. The third ceremony was held in Bokaro last December where 105 projects having cumulative investment of Rs 3,375 crore were given a nod. The fourth ceremony was held in Deoghar in March this year, where foundations for 151 projects worth Rs 2,700 crore were laid.