Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said, the Pradhan Mantri Annadata Aay Sanrakshan Abhiyan (PM-AASHA), approved by the Union Cabinet, will empower farmers and strengthen the Agriculture sector. <br />''<br />''<br />''In a series of tweets, Mr Modi said, every citizen of the country is grateful to the hardworking farmers. He reiterated the government's commitment of doubling the farmers income by 2022 and bringing a positive change in their lives.<br />''<br />''<br />''Giving a major boost to the farmer initiatives, the Cabinet yesterday approved the new umbrella policy, PM-AASHA aimed at ensuring remunerative prices to the farmers for their produce. <br />''<br />''<br />''AIR correspondent reports the scheme will allow states to choose a compensation scheme and bring in private agencies for procurement. Under the PM-AASHA, states would be allowed to choose from three schemes, existing Price Support Scheme, newly designed Price Deficiency Payment Scheme and Pilot of Private Procurement Stockist Scheme to undertake procurement when prices of commodities fall below the Minimum Support Price level. <br />''<br />''<br />''The Cabinet has sanctioned over fifteen thousand crore rupees to implement the PM-AASHA in the next two financial years, of which  over six thousand crore rupees will be spent this year.<br />''<br />''<br />''<span style="color: #222222;">Among other decisions, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) sanctioned 12,000 crore rupees for electrification of all non-electrified broad guage rail routes. The CCEA also approved an over 25 per cent hike in the price of ethanol produced directly from sugarcane juice for blending in petrol.</span><br />