Primary importance given to the agricultural sector: Niranjan Reddy

Channel: Agriculture Minister Singireddy Niranjan Reddy said the government attaches paramount importance to the agricultural sector, which plays a vital role in the growth of a society. He and the Minister of Forests visited the former district of Adilabad on Monday. Niranjan and Indrakaran first attended a sensitization meeting on vanakalam season crops among farmers in Nirmal district headquarters.

Addressing the farmers, Niranjan referred to the farmers as a form of god. He was of the opinion that everyone would prosper if agriculture developed. He asked farmers not to opt for BT cotton seeds which would have a negative impact on the soil and the producers. He advised them to grow cotton or soy instead of paddy. He urged them not to use more fertilizers and pesticides than normal.

The minister has instructed officials of the agriculture department to sensitize farmers on the use of fertilizers. He said farmers would follow the advice of authorities. He told the agrarian community to depend on organic fertilizers and to increase soil fertility. He believed that agriculture could be profitable by growing crops that were in demand. Niranjan further advised farmers to switch to growing black gram which has many takers after rice and pigeon peas in the country. He said Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao offered to buy paddy for the Yasangi season when the Center refused to do so. He wanted farmers to opt for oil palm cultivation as part of crop diversification.

The minister said the government has set a target to cultivate oil palm on 2.5 lakh acres this year. He said he was promoting the crop because it has redemption potential. Growers can raise sheep and grow other crops once they sow the saplings, he added.

Indrakaran said Chandrasekhar Rao realized the adage – the farmer is king, while successive governments have exploited the slogan for 75 years. He said farmers have been able to have sufficient irrigation facilities thanks to Rao’s re-engineering of irrigation projects. The minister advised farmers to focus on growing profitable crops.

The ministers then inspected an oil palm nursery in Jannaram before convening a similar meeting with the authorities of Mancherial and Kumram Bheem Asifabad in the town of Mancherial. They asked agriculture department officials to raise awareness of alternative crops and make farming profitable. Government whip Balka Suman, lawmakers Diwakar Rao, Chinnaiah, Konappa, zilla parishad presidents N Bhagyalaxmi and Kova Laxmi, MLC Dande Vittal, collectors Bharati Hollikeri and Rahul Raj were present.

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