Amaravati: Buy bananas, tomatoes from ryots, officials told

Amaravati: Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy ordered officials to buy banana and tomato crops to relieve farmers from the crisis. Pointing out that the farmers were facing problems with the crops that cannot be stored, he instructed the officials to resolve the issue during a high-level review meeting on COVID-19 situation held at the Chief Minister's camp office at Tadepalli in Guntur district on Tuesday.

However, the government is keen on providing MSP to farmers. The officials briefed the Chief Minister that fruit vendors are being allowed to sell fruits and farmers will be benefitted by this. The retail business is functional during the lockdown relaxation period.

The Chief Minister instructed the officials to set up a distribution network that coordinates from the village level to the city level and supply the goods based on the demand in the respective villages and cities.

The officials said that of the 69 agriculture and aqua processing units in the State, 41 are functional. Fisheries Department officials are coordinating with control rooms in districts to issue passes to the workers working in processing units.

Moreover, products are being exported to America and China. 13 containers from Visakhapatnam and 4 containers from Kakinada have been exported on Monday, informed the officials.

The Chief Minister said all the bills under Aarogyasri services have been cleared and instructed the officials to provide quality treatment to everyone in the State. Minister Botcha Satyanarayana, Chief Secretary Nilam Sawhney and DGP Gautam Sawang were among those present at the meeting.