Prime Minister Vladimir Putin visited the Tambov Region for a conference on implementing four priority national projects. But before delving into theory together with local officials, he decided to see how it worked in practice. In one day, Putin learned to drive a new tractor, tasted local milk, inspected dilapidated buildings and new affordable housing and provided a pig breeder with 50 million roubles for a new farm.
Farmers throughout the Tambov Region were waiting for rain.
"Could you send us over some clouds from the Moscow Region?" Anatoly Chukanov, the director of the Prigorodny stud farm, blurted out.
"I'm not in charge of the clouds," Putin laughed. "We'll see what can be done about this at the conference."
"Would you like to be the first person to drive it?" asked Alexander Petrov, the head of the Tambov machine-building plant, drawing Putin over to a line of tractors made at his plant, all painted bright orange.
"Of course, I do!" Putin said, jumping into the cabin. Looking around the cabin Putin showered the director with questions:
"Who is this second seat for?"
"For a milkmaid," Petrov found an answer.
"Good, after all, she might need a lift somewhere," Putin said approvingly.
Then Putin headed to the Tambov-Moloko small dairy farm in the village of Streltsy. It was built as part of a national project to develop the agro-industrial complex. A whole tasting room was arranged for the prime minister with glasses of milk, baked cultured milk, kefir, sour milk and a selection of yoghurts. There were also samples of sour cream and cottage cheese.
"Thank you for the milk. It is very good," Putin said with pleasure.
Dilapidated five-storey buildings, cheaply constructed in Nikita Khrushchev's time, were next on his agenda, and also newly built cottages that are deemed affordable housing. Local officials chose the residential area called Krutyye Vyselki (the Cool Village). The village seemed to live up to its name: wooden cottages with porches and balconies neatly built on a 10,764 square foot plot of land. One square meter (3.281 square feet) of this housing costs 35,000 roubles, while an entire cottage has a price tag of 4.5 million roubles. Only Muscovites with above average incomes can afford to buy these properties, because the average monthly salary in the Tambov Region is a mere 14,000 roubles. At the conference Putin instructed the regional heads to speed up the transfer of land plots for the residential construction and urged the Finance Ministry and the Central Bank to encourage regional banks to cut their interest rates on loans. He promised that the government will continue to support agricultural producers.
"Why are you killing farmers?" he asked regional leaders and representatives of the Federal Anti-Monopoly Service (FAS). "You should support them, and you are putting them at a disadvantage."
After the conference Putin met with local residents. This was when Viktor Perelygin, a businessman from Tambov, hit the jackpot.
"I don't have enough money to complete the construction of a farm," he shouted.
Putin asked him how much he is short of.
"Thirty million," Viktor replied.
"How many pigs will you have?"
"Up to 3,000 pigs," Viktor said readily.
"What's your address?" Putin asked, producing a notepad and a pen from his pocket.
Tambov Region Governor Oleg Betin went into a flat spin and promised support to the farmer. But Putin had already noticed Head of Rosselkhozbank Dmitry Patrushev in the crowd and gestured at him and Viktor, ushering them over to him.
"So you need a loan?" Putin asked Viktor again.
"Yes I do, but I don't have enough to borrow against. I'm ready to use my house, car and practically everything I have as collateral," he replied.
"Give him a loan of 50 million roubles for 10 years," Putin instructed Patrushev.
"Will do!" Patrushev replied.
* * *
Farmers of the Tambov Region were waiting for rain.
"Could you send us some clouds over from the Moscow Region?" Anatoly Chukanov, the director of the Prigorodny stud farm, blurted out.
"I'm not in charge of the clouds," Putin laughed.
Anastasia Savinykh
