Government to announce new rice farming plan for the new season



BANGKOK: -- The government will next week announce a comprehensive rice cultivation plan for the new season covering altogether 55.8 million rai throughout the country, said commerce permanent secretary Ms Chutima Boonyaprapat on Friday.

Under the plan, the government will clearly designate which parts of the country or which districts are to be planted with rice and when the cultivation will start. For farmland which used to be cultivated with rice and are not covered by the plan this year, the government will encourage and help farmers to turn to alternative crops and will also provide vocational training to the farmers so that they will have other means to make a living.

Ms Chutima clarified that the government had applied technology from the Geo-informatics and Space Technology Development Agency to designate areas for rice cultivation and an agri-map has been drawn up for a pro-active agricultural management.

She said that the 55.8 million rai of designated rice farmland will be overseen by 28 teams of inspectors-general who will monitor the farmland from cultivation until rice is harvested. This means that if there is any problem at any part of the rice farmland, the inspector-general’s team will immediately investigate and report to the respective provincial governors so the problem can be fixed, she added.

Ms Chutima further said that GISTDA satellite will be deployed to keep track of rice cultivation specified in the agri-map and this will provide real-time information about rice cultivation situation.

To encourage farmers to group together in the form of a cooperative or farming group for easy access to financial funding, the commerce permanent secretary said that the Bank of Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives has pledged to

provide each farming group with a big plot of rice farmland low interest loan of up to five million baht each.

Also, farmers can be assured that their rice crops will be bought by rice millers as about 300 rice millers have agreed to join the new rice cultivation plan.

Source: http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/content/160661


-- Thai PBS 2016-04-22

A comprehensive and controlling government plan for staple food production. This type of approach has generally been a disaster in many places where it has been tried.

I would prefer the government focused on infrastructure to support agriculture (water supply), and basic subsidies to lessen poverty.

But leave the cultivation decisions to be made on a local level, with plenty of input from the water suppliers.

Don't bother. I'm sure that the farmers will not take a blind bit of notice.

My Father in law has a small farm. pretty marginal land. on which he grows one crop of rice a year and some corn. This has fed his family for years. Chillies and ginger provide him with a little bit of cash. a fish pond with cash and or protein.

If the "man from the ministry" turns up to tell him what to do he will just ignore him.

A comprehensive and controlling government plan for staple food production. This type of approach has generally been a disaster in many places where it has been tried.

I would prefer the government focused on infrastructure to support agriculture (water supply), and basic subsidies to lessen poverty.

But leave the cultivation decisions to be made on a local level, with plenty of input from the water suppliers.

Hardly bears thinking about really.

Also, farmers can be assured that their rice crops will be bought by rice millers...

At a pre-agreed price perchance?

Hard to believe they are dedicating a satellite just to monitor this. The fact is that none of these farmers give a rats a--- about changing their crops of changing their lives and most are too old to learn new ways of doing things. Good luck with the gov plan. But I foresee it as just another waste of money that could have been used in saving eater from the monsoon season soon to be here.

Many farmers will completely ignore the plan, especially the ones left out of the plan as such farmers will still want to make a living from rice farming. And I expect the plan is purely voluntary although the govt will make it sound like if you don't comply with the plan then you don't love Thailand.

This should deflect the entertainment away from Prayut - O and the Charter ,section 44, attitude adjustment , human rights, the China connection and democracy , for awhile anyway.....................

Seems more about employing government officials who have been moved sideways, nice title though "Inspector General"

Central-planning of agriculture has after all been so very successful elsewhere, in the past, hasn't it !

"Under the plan, the government will clearly designate which parts of the country or which districts are to be planted with rice and when the cultivation will start. "

Very likely the farmer will not take any notice of this stupidity......

Also, farmers can be assured that their rice crops will be bought by rice millers...

At a pre-agreed price perchance?

At a "take it or leave it" price.

If there isn't enough rain there won't be a lot of rice farming!

Good luck with this hardly any <deleted> water in the dams

..

You can try to micromanage all you want but you have two problems.

1/ What makes you think you have the right solution to the problems.

2/ What makes you think any farmer is going to listen to you.

Just focus on the infrastructure that will help farmers be more productive and

let them decide when and what to plant.

For farmland which used to be cultivated with rice and are not covered by the plan this year, the government will encourage and help farmers to turn to alternative crops and will also provide vocational training to the farmers so that they will have other means to make a living.

Legal MJ, Coca, and Opium would be a good idea.

Shame they just can't let go of medieval 'Drugs m'bad m'kay' thinking and be done with it.

The war is lost and the propagana of fear, loathing, and the unravelling of society has been discredited repeatedly, in the lab and in Portugal, Czech Republic, only to fall on dumb heads.

Don't bother. I'm sure that the farmers will not take a blind bit of notice.

My Father in law has a small farm. pretty marginal land. on which he grows one crop of rice a year and some corn. This has fed his family for years. Chillies and ginger provide him with a little bit of cash. a fish pond with cash and or protein.

If the "man from the ministry" turns up to tell him what to do he will just ignore him.

I'm sure you;re right, that's what they usually do around here.

I don't understand why this guy apparently looks for ways to be embarrassed and look all clod-ish. Mystery to me.

Pretty hard to grow anything without water.

Ah the old carrot and stick approach. Join one of the 28 groups and you can grow rice and you will get low interest loans of 5 million each group. Just what farmers drowning in debt need. Or grow something else and remember we are watching you via satalite

Edited April 23, 201610 yr by waza

Pretty hard to grow anything without water.

DSC_0054a.jpg

I see plenty of tree's though! Those could be fruitproducers or timbertree's. Hardwood is easy to grow and gets top price these days.

There must be water underground there, so you need a crop with long roots like tree's.

This should deflect the entertainment away from Prayut - O and the Charter ,section 44, attitude adjustment , human rights, the China connection and democracy , for awhile anyway.....................

China connection? isn't this a rather Chinese way of going about things, Grand national plans for agriculture. Top down Government. Encouraging co-operatives. All we need now is a cultural revolution and a purge or two to make the happiness complete.

Pretty hard to grow anything without water.

DSC_0054a.jpg

I see plenty of tree's though! Those could be fruitproducers or timbertree's. Hardwood is easy to grow and gets top price these days.

There must be water underground there, so you need a crop with long roots like tree's.

Hmm, and how do you feed and provide for your family during the umpteen odd years it takes for the trees to mature?

Most small farmers here are basically subsistence farmers. Much of what they grow is used to feed their family. What they sell. after the middleman has squeezed them. provides cash for immediate needs.

Pretty hard to grow anything without water.

DSC_0054a.jpg

I see plenty of tree's though! Those could be fruitproducers or timbertree's. Hardwood is easy to grow and gets top price these days.

There must be water underground there, so you need a crop with long roots like tree's.

Fruit trees require plenty of irrigation (no water available remember) and hardwood trees take 10+ years to grow.

Pretty hard to grow anything without water.

DSC_0054a.jpg

I see plenty of tree's though! Those could be fruitproducers or timbertree's. Hardwood is easy to grow and gets top price these days.

There must be water underground there, so you need a crop with long roots like tree's.

Fruit trees require plenty of irrigation (no water available remember) and hardwood trees take 10+ years to grow.

Even pulpwood is a five-year deal. If a person had sufficient land that one could get a pulpwood crop each year, it would take some time for that to get productive.