New Delhi: Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman proposed several proposals for farmers, animal husbandry, veterinary professionals, and especially for women-led rural businesses.

To strengthen the fisheries sectors, an initiative for the integrated development of 500 reservoirs and Amrit Sarovars was proposed by the Finance Minister in the fisheries value chain.

The attempts will focus on advancing market linkages and supporting startups, women-led businesses, and fish farmer producer organisations, especially in coastal areas.

A credit-linked subsidy will be introduced in animal husbandry to promote entrepreneurship, modernise livestock enterprises, and advance value chains across dairy, poultry, and livestock sectors.

The government will help the livestock farmer producer organistaions to create employment in rural and urban fringe areas.

Coconut Promotion Scheme to increase production and enhance productivity to support 3 crore people, including 1 crore farmers.

The scheme aims to improve varieties in coconut-growing states and to increase the production productivity of the coconut trees.

Indian cashew and Indian cocoa to transform into global brands by 2030. The government will partner with state governments to restore the Indian sandalwood ecosystem, the finance minister added.

Self-Help Entrepreneur (SHE) Marts for rural women-led enterprises. The scheme is built on the success of the Lakhpati Didi programme; SHE-Marts will be set up to help women take the next step from credit-led livelihoods to being owners of enterprises.

The Union Budget revealed the Bharat Vistaar, a new AI-powered platform to enhance agricultural decisions for farmers across the nation. The AI-tool prioritise real-time data for soil and weather, expert advice, and government schemes to help farmers manage their operations and receive support.

“Bharat Vistaar – Virtually Integrated System to access Agricultural Resources. I propose to launch Bharat Vistaar, a multilingual AI tool that shall integrate the agri-stack portals and the ICAR package on agricultural practices with AI systems,” Nirmala Sitharaman stated.

Currently, around 4,000 workers are using the AI-Telegram chatbot for agricultural activities in Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh.