AP Starts Enumeration of Crop Damage in 103 Drought-hit Mandals

 Vijayawada: Enumeration of crop damage in 103 drought-hit mandals begins in AP on Friday with a target to submit the final list of beneficiaries by November 29 so as to release input subsidy to them early.

Agriculture special commissioner Chevuru Harikiran issued a memo here on Friday on declaration of the drought during the kharif season. The failure of the south-west monsoon affected 103 mandals, of which 80 were affected severely and 23 moderately in seven districts including the NTR, Kurnool, Nandyal, Anantapur, Sri Satya Sai, Annamayya and Chittoor.

The special commissioner issued directions to the district agriculture officers to initiate the process of enumeration of agricultural crop damage of more than 33 per cent, as per the guidelines, and prepare the list of affected farmers by November 20.

The list of affected farmers is to be displayed at RBK for social auditing from November 21 to November 25 and any grievances that arose should be redressed by November 27.

The final list of affected farmers prepared as per norms of the state disaster relief fund and national disaster relief fund, vis-à-vis the scale of relief, should be submitted with the approval of the district collector concerned by November 29.

The state government’s guidelines should be followed while enumerating the crop damage. The actual cultivator registered in e-crop will only be considered at the time of enumeration of crop damage for extending financial relief in the form of input subsidy.

In NTR district alone, two mandals including Gampalagudem and Tiruvuru are designated as drought-hit.

NTR district agriculture joint director Naga Manemma said, “We will take up enumeration of crop damage due to the drought as we received instructions to this effect in two affected mandals.”

Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy has been maintaining that his government is committed to the rescue of farmers who suffered crop damage or loss due to natural calamities. The enumeration would be done in a just manner and input subsidy would be provided during the same season.

This, he said, is unlike the earlier practice of making the farmers wait for relief, which forced them to borrow money to do cultivation of crops.

Meanwhile, farmers raised paddy during the kharif season in nearly 33.5 lakh acres and the average yield was 25 to 30 bags per acre. The quantum of loss in paddy production in drought hit mandals in the state for the kharif is to be ascertained.