India Looks at Grower Welfare Schemes

Source from:  Wednesday, October 11, 2006 tobaccoreporter.com 10/13/2006

India's Tobacco Board has set up a committee to examine what farmer welfare schemes should be supported with money raised from punitive charges levied on excess production, according to a report in The Hindu Business Line quoting Dr Y. Sivaji, the president of the Andhra Pradesh Tobacco Growers' Association. Sivaji, a trenchant supporter of tobacco growers, said that the Board had accumulated as much as Rs1 billion. In principle, he added, the Board had agreed that the funds should be used to promote the welfare of farmers and that they should not be diverted to any other purpose. Enditem