Collector P. Akash at the farmers’ grievance day meeting in Sivaganga on Wednesday.
Farmers during the Sivaganga district farmers’ grievance meeting here on Wednesday opposed the implementation of the Framework for Fertiliser Supply (FFS) App for distributing fertilizers.
A majority of farmers urged authorities to halt the FFS app-based fertiliser distribution scheme, which is being implemented in Sivaganga district as a pilot project in Tamil Nadu.
Expressing their concerns, the farmers stated that they lacked adequate awareness of the new system, which requires scanning a QR code before fertilisers are distributed.
They warned that if a large number of farmers visit cooperative societies simultaneously, it will cause unnecessary delays, and server or technical issues will hinder timely access to fertilisers. Consequently, they demanded that the new procedure be dropped.
In response, District Collector P. Akash stated that the concerns raised by the farmers would be communicated to the government.
Following this discussion, Gopal, a farmer from Sokkanathirupur, walked out of the meeting carrying copies of petitions he had submitted to officials, protesting the failure to desilt the Panayanenthal and Ulaganenthal irrigation tanks for many years.
During the subsequent discussions, farmer Ayyachamy pointed out that while water from the Cauvery Combined Drinking Water Project reaches overhead tanks in many areas, pipeline connections from the tanks to individual houses have not been established, leaving residents without water supply and forcing them to buy drinking water.
He also called for the cleanup of the Vaigai riverbed, which is overgrown with seemai karuvelam trees and facilitating antisocial activities.
Farmer Rajendran noted that private e-service centres are charging ₹200 instead of the official fee of ₹60 for services and urged authorities to stop the practice and ensure the timely issuance of adangal certificates. Mr. Akash responded that private e-service centres would be inspected and strict action taken against those charging excess fees.
Farmer Veerapandian stated that vacant secretary posts in several Primary Agricultural Cooperative Credit Societies (PACCS) are causing delays in fertiliser distribution.
He also highlighted that eucalyptus trees are depleting water inflow into irrigation tanks, despite the Forest Department continuing to plant eucalyptus saplings. In reply, the Collector noted that since Sivaganga is a drought-prone district, the Forest Department should reduce the cultivation of eucalyptus trees.
Published – September 30, 2026 08:10 pm IST
