Minister for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare R. Vinoth, Minister for Backward classes welfare V. Sampath Kumar and Minister for Handlooms, Textiles and Khadi M. Vijay Balaji participated in a consultative meeting with the farmers here on Thursday (July 2, 2026).In the meeting held at the Salem Collectorate, farmers from 10 districts - Salem, Dharmapuri, Krishnagiri, Erode, Tiruppur, Coimbatore, Namakkal, Nilgiris, Kallakurichi, and Karur, participated and presented their suggestions to be included in the agriculture Budget. While a few farmers were allowed to voice their suggestions, officials did not permit many others to do the same. Irked by this, few farmers engaged in a verbal altercation with the officials.Speaking at the meeting, Minister Vinoth stated that 14.43 lakh farmers have been benefited through the crop loan waiver to the tune of ₹6,000 crore. For the year 2026-27, 131.36 lakh metric tonnes of food grains has been set for production. He urged Kuruvai crop farmers to insure their paddy crops before July 31. “In the last two months, through the ‘E-Vadagai’ mobile app, 16,791 farmers registered for agricultural vehicles, and 13,234 farmers benefitted, the Minister added.In the meeting, MLAs from 10 districts and officials from the departments concerned participated. Published - July 02, 2026 06:52 pm IST