Agriculture Minister Pijush Hazarika inaugurates Paddy Procurement Centre in Makum and Irrigation Conference Hall in Dibrugarh, reviews agriculture and irrigation schemes.

January 15 set as strict deadline for completing farmer registration; inspects irrigation projects and proposed Makhana cultivation sites: Minister Hazarika.

Dalim Phukan, Hills Live News, Dibrugarh, Nov 12. Minister for Agriculture, Irrigation, and Parliamentary Affairs Pijush Hazarika today completed an extensive official tour of Tinsukia and Dibrugarh districts, inaugurating key administrative and procurement infrastructure, inspecting field projects, and chairing high-level departmental review meetings.

Commencing his tour in Tinsukia, Minister Hazarika inaugurated a new Paddy Procurement Centre (PPC) at Makum in the presence of MLAs Bolin Chetia and Rupesh Gowala. Highlighting the state government’s commitment to eliminating middlemen and ensuring direct financial benefit for farmers, the Minister expressed gratitude to Chief Minister Dr. Himanta Biswa Sarma for providing an additional state subsidy of Rs 199 per quintal, raising the effective procurement price of paddy to Rs 2,640 per quintal. Later at the Tinsukia Convention Centre, Minister Hazarika chaired a joint review meeting of the Agriculture and Irrigation departments. Setting a strict deadline of January 15, 2027, to complete the farmer registration process, he directed the District Commissioner to resolve land mutation and forest land issues so that no eligible cultivator is left out.

Proceeding to Dibrugarh, Minister Hazarika inaugurated the newly constructed Conference Hall of the Dibrugarh-Chabua-Lahowal Irrigation Division in the presence of Dibrugarh MLA Prasanta Phukan.

Immediately following this inauguration, he chaired a comprehensive review meeting at the Dibrugarh DC Office conference hall. Commending Dibrugarh district for achieving 92.85 percent of its farmer registration target, he instructed officials to cover the remaining 8 percent at the earliest. He noted that while land documentation bottlenecks in Cachar, Dima Hasao, and Karbi Anglong may impact the overall state target of 27 lakh registrations, all other districts must complete their targets within the January 15 deadline. 

As part of his field inspections in Dibrugarh, Minister Hazarika visited a medium deep tubewell scheme implemented under the SOPD-G initiative of the Irrigation Department at Mohpuwalimora village, which irrigates 20 hectares of farmland. He also inspected a proposed Makhana cultivation site near the Bogibeel bridge, directing officials to clean the water body, provide high-quality seeds, and arrange scientific training for local farmers to turn wetland resources into profitable ventures.

Throughout his Dibrugarh programs, the Minister was accompanied by political secretary to the CM and MLA Taranga Gogoi, along with MLAs Prasanta Phukan and Chakradhar Gogoi.