Hyderabad: Agriculture minister Tummala Nageswara Rao has urged the farmers to follow the quality norms and avail of Rs 7,251 minimum support price (MSP) per quintal of cotton, and he warned officials against any negligence in discharging their duties. In a review meeting held here on Wednesday with the marketing department officials, Nageswara Rao ordered them to make necessary arrangements to start cotton procurement in the state before the crop arrived in the markets.
According to the official data, cotton is cultivated on 42.33 lakh acres in Telangana, and the expected yield is 25.33 lakh tonnes. The minister had earlier held a meeting with the ginning mills association and asked them to participate in the tender process of cotton procurement. Of the 351 mills, 319 of them had participated in the tenders.
The marketing department officials apprised the minister about their new software, which provides the farmers’ data. The software will also assist the farmers in selling their cotton to the Cotton Corporation of India (CCI). It will provide the farmers with important information such as the quantum of cotton that can be sold to the CCI, how to get paid for the produce and the waiting period at different purchase centres. Once cotton is bought, the cash will be deposited into the farmers' bank account after asserting their identity through Aadhaar verification and double-factor authentication with an OTP linked to their mobile phone.
