The Hindu Business Line : AP foodgrains production target set at 172 lakh t

THE State Government is targeting a production of 172.68 lakh tonnes of foodgrains, 31.61 lakh tonnes of oilseeds and 20.15 lakh bales of cotton this year. The Government proposes to increase the productivity of crops by 5 per cent over the best season during the last five years.

The Agriculture Minister, Mr N. Raghuveera Reddy, told the Legislative Assembly on Tuesday that the Agriculture Action Plan for 2004-05 envisaged cultivation of rice in 35 lakh hectares (lh), coarse cereals in 19.46 lh, pulses in 23.75 lh, oilseeds in 30.69 lh and cotton in 8.5 lh. In the current Kharif season, it was planned to cover 22 lh with rice, 12.05 lh with pulses and 23.9 lh with oilseed crops.

The Minister said the Government had planned to supply 5.63 lakh quintals (lq) of paddy seed, 5.64 lq of groundnut, 53,750 quintals of soyabean and 1.71 lq of other crops seed at subsidised rate to farmers during this Kharif season. It was planned to draw 10,000 seed samples, 7,500 fertiliser samples and 6,500 pesticide samples to check the quality of the agricultural inputs. Squads have been formed at district levels to check spurious seeds, fertilisers and pesticides.

He said the State Government had also started a dialogue with insurance companies on insurance of failed bore wells to reduce the burden on farmers. This apart, the Government was considering introduction of a comprehensive medical group insurance to the farmers on the lines of that existing in the neighbouring Karnataka State.

On the whole, the Minister said, there were 1.06-crore operational land holdings in the State. Of these, 85.51 lakh holdings belonged to small and marginal farmers. The Government decided to promote bio-fuel plantations in 2 lakh acres in the first phase for enhancing the income levels of farmers in rain shadow areas. The details of the scheme were being worked out.

More Stories on : Foodgrains | Andhra Pradesh

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page