Telangana seeks innovations in farming

Hyderabad: TELANGANA government gives top priority to agriculture sector and it is focusing on setting up food processing zones, Minister for Agriculture, Marketing and Civil Supplies Singireddy Niranjan Reddy said urging the companies to come forward and set up food processing units across the State.

He was supposed to attend Agri-Business Summit and Agri Awards (ABSA) 2021 here on Thursday. But, he could not make it to the programme as he was with the Chief Minister in New Delhi. So, he sent a voice message to the attendees of the event.

The minister said, "The State is witnessing a Golden Age in agriculture with farm innovations, smart poultry, smart agriculture and seamless growth in land farming. Farmers need more innovative products and methods. Together we all play a crucial role in this journey to enable innovations in the agri-sector." Research and extension plays a central role in innovation. The need of the hour is to produce more with fewer natural resources. Netherlands, Spain, Israel like many tiny countries have demonstrated how they could excel in agriculture.

Raghunandan Rao, Secretary to government - Agriculture and Cooperation, said: "Agriculture remained as the focus of its activity for the government in the last seven years. Telangana is the only State to provide 24 hours power supply to all the sectors, including agriculture."

It is the first State to provide investment and input assistance to every farmer twice a year at the beginning of the crop season. So far, Rs 40,000-crore assistance was extended under this scheme. It is the only State which has fully functional farmers' insurance with online claim settlement.

As a result of these efforts, there is a growth of 40 per cent cultivated area over seven-year period. Huge investments have gone into irrigation. Farm mechanisation has also gone up which is evident from the fact that the number of tractors increased by 125 per cent.

Raghunandan Rao further informed, "The warehousing capacities have also enhanced in the State. Telangana is probably the only State to have a fully trained agriculture graduate available to every 5,000-acre cultivable land. This led to increased agri-production and productivity."

Jayesh Ranjan, Principal Secretary of Industries and Commerce, highlighted the various efforts put in by the government to promote agri-food processing centres in the State. He urged agri-entrepreneurs to utilise the huge opportunities that arise due to positive policy framework for food processing industry.