After Telangana, it is the turn of Andhra Pradesh to ask its farmers to move away from paddy in the rabi season and consider shifting to alternative crops such as millets.

While asking farmers to shun paddy being grown under borewells, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy has asked the officials to set up a Millets Board and facilitate establishment of processing units to encourage the cultivation of millet in the State.

Telangana Chief Minister to farmers: Don’t grow paddy in rabi

The AP Chief Minister’s call comes close on the heels of his Telangana counterpart K Chandrashekar Rao directing farmers not to grow paddy in the rabi season. The Union Government’s refusal to procure parboiled rice prompted the Telangana Government to launch a campaign for alternative crops this rabi season.

Incentivising millet cultivation

Taking a cue, the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister too has asked the Agriculture Department to launch a campaign encouraging farmers to shift to other crops this rabi season.

He asked officials of the Agriculture Department to educate farmers on the need to reduce the paddy area.

Row over paddy procurement impacts sowing in Telangana

At a review meeting held at Amaravati on Tuesday, he said farmers should get incentives for cultivation of millets. “We need to incentivise farmers following organic and natural farming methods,” he said.

The State earlier planned to increase the paddy area by one lakh hectares to 8.50 lakh hectares from the normal area of 7.50 lakh ha. The farmers, however, have sown only 51,000 ha so far as against the as-on-date sown area of 94,000 ha.

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