Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar informed Parliament on Tuesday that the government is working on generating a unique identifier (ID) for farmers who have taken advantage of agricultural initiatives. “The farmer’s unique identifier would link the farmer’s profile to all of the agricultural initiatives that the farmer has taken advantage of,” Tomar said in a written reply to the Lok Sabha.
The minister emphasised the benefits of generating a unique ID for farmers, saying it would help with farmer verification through e-Know Your Farmer (e-KYF), which would minimise the need for re-submitting physical papers to different authorities for benefits under various programmes.
It will also make field-based and customised advisories more accessible, as well as facilitate accessing agricultural damage due to harsh weather conditions easier, he stated.
He stated that as of December 9, the government has a database of 11.64 crore farmers who had signed up for the PM-KISAN initiative.