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    Government plans to set up PM KISAN call centre

    Synopsis

    At present there is a helpline number for farmers to register complaints and seek information, but there have been complaints galore that farmers have not been getting any response from the helpline.

    Farmer-PTI
    So far, more than 70 million farmers have received the first installment.
    NEW DELHI: The Modi government is planning to set up a call centre to respond to farmers’ queries about the PM Kisan minimum income support scheme, under which beneficiaries get Rs 6,000 a year in three equal installments.

    It plans to have a dedicated round-the-clock interactive voice response (IVR) system. At present there is a helpline number for farmers to register complaints and seek information, but there have been complaints galore that farmers have not been getting any response from the helpline.

    “The database of beneficiaries is huge now. Around 75 million farmers have registered for this scheme. We expect the numbers to reach 100 million by the end of this financial year. So, we need a dedicated call centre to deal with their issues and problems,” said a senior agriculture department official, who did not wish to be identified.

    The 24X7 call centre will be multilingual and have multiple entry checks so that it cannot be misused.

    “Callers will have to call from registered mobile numbers. Besides, the call will be entertained only when the caller gives a correct bank account number and Aadhaar number. This will rule out fake calls. We will focus on redressing grievances in a time-bound manner,” said the official.

    So far, more than 70 million farmers have received the first instalment, 60 million have received the second instalment and 35 million have got the third instalment. Ahead of Diwali, the government expects to transfer money to at least 10 million more beneficiaries.

    “We are facing problems in authenticating the Aadhaar numbers of beneficiaries. We are working on devising a foolproof system which will enable us to verify bonafide beneficiaries,” said the official.


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    ( Originally published on Oct 23, 2019 )
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