VIJAYAWADA: Andhra Pradesh has witnessed a rise of area of cultivation during rabi season to 59.06 lakh acres against the targeted 58.92 lakh acres. In terms of food,grain production, it was up to 90.10 lakh metric tonnes this season against 87.35 lakh metric tonnes last year, as per the third advance estimate.
Though the total cropped area during the season used to be 56.19 lakh acres, it has gone up after the state government extended support to farmers in the form of input subsidy for crop loss due to natural calamities. The state’s total area sown for rabi in 2018-19 was 53.09 lakh acres and in 2019-20, it was 57.08 lakh acres.
Under the influence of Nivar cyclonic storm, Kharif standing crop and rabi cropped area suffered around 33 per cent damage under different crops coming up to 4.59 lakh hectare and a production loss of 8.57 lakh metric tonnes worth of Rs 1,948.08 crore.
However, the state government has come to the rescue of farmers by providing 80% subsidy for seeds through D Krishi app in affected districts to enable farmers to take up re-sowing at an estimated cost of Rs 3,633 lakh to benefit 2,17,952 farmers through Rytu Bharosa Kendras. The state government disbursed input subsidy worth of Rs 601 crore to Nivar-affected farmers.
With regard to paddy procurement strategy, the state civil supplies authorities are setting up 1,830 paddy purchase centres all over the state with a procuring target of 45 lakh metric tonnes of the expected yield of 62 lakh metric tonnes for rabi. In previous rabi, the authorities procured only 34 lakh metric tonnes of paddy.
Officials reasoned out the jacked up target of paddy procurement, they started raising crops early for rabi season, which has resulted in enhanced cropped area and yield. The authorities will procure paddy at farm gate of RBK which means that the farmer who intends to sell away paddy has to register with RBK so that he will be issued a coupon and time about the visit of paddy purchase centre staff to procure paddy and send it to the designated rice mills.
The minimum support price for paddy of grade-A variety has been fixed at Rs 1,888 per quintal and Rs 1,868 for common variety per quintal.
AP civil supplies commissioner Kona Sasidhar said “We have enhanced the targeted procurement of paddy this rabi season to 45 lakh metric tonnes. There is no reason for the farmer to sell away his paddy below the MSP as he can approach RBK.”
