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The Telangana Sate Cabinet is slated to hold a meeting on May 5 to discuss the Cornavirus pandedmic situation and take a call on how to go about the ongoing lockdown.
The Union Ministry of Home Affairs on Friday announced extension of lockdown by two more weeks from May 3 to May 17.
The Cabinet, chaired by State Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, convened on May 5 at Pragathi Bhavan, the official residence-cum-office, is expected to finalise the next move on the lockdown and the way forward in terms of relaxation for some segments.
The State Chief Minister at the Cabinet meeting held on April 19 decided to extend the lockdown till May 7, while the Centre had announced the lockdown till May 3. He had also made it clear that a follow up decision will be taken on May 5.
AGRICULTURE POLICY
Apart from taking a call on extension of the lockdwon period and relaxation if any in various zones as announced by the Centre, the Chief Minister has also directed officials to prepare a report on the current state of the agriculture sector and future course of action. The State Government is planning to come out with a policy framework for agriculture sector.
According to the Chief Minister, “In the past, there was no availability of adequate irrigation water for the farmers. Now the situation has drastically changed in the State. Water for irrigation is reaching every nook and corner of the State. Due to 24-hour power supply, cultivation is taking place under the borewells too. If farmers are provided with right guidance they can have profitable agriculture. We will bring about changes in the cultivation methods, selection of the crops, use of fertilisers, marketing of the produce. The new Agriculture Policy in the State should work in this direction.”
Paddy is being cultivated in a big way in the State. Farmers are going in for the coarse variety, as the cultivation period is less. But majority of people are eating only fine variety rice. This fine variety is in great demand in other States and countries too. Now that we have water facility for irrigation, farmers should cultivate more fine rice variety and they should be educated on the matter,” the CM said.
Since it was decided to construct additional godowns with a capacity of 40 lakh tonnes, the CM instructed the officials to identify the lands and wanted cold storage facility be incorporated in the proposed godowns.
STATE FINANCES
The State finances have been hit due to lockdown with tax collections dwindling. The revenues have significantly come down necessitating the State to resort to market borrowings. Apart from raising funds through market borrowings, the State has also requested the centre to bring in flexibility in Fiscal responsibility and Budget Management so that it could raise more funds during the current crisis period. The State Cabinet is likely to decide on the State finances.
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