TS pushes for sandalwood cultivation
Hyderabad: Agriculture Minister S Niranjan Reddy said the State government would bring policy on the cultivation and sale of Sri Gandham (Santalum album), the Indian Sandalwood in Telangana.
Addressing a State-level awareness meeting of the farmers on agroforestry here on Monday, he said, "we have taken up the initiative to encourage the cultivation of Sri Gandham trees in the State.
After a yearlong ground works the Horticulture Department has brought seeds from Kerala." Claiming that the State is the only suitable place in the entire world to grow the Indian Sandalwood after Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, Niranjan Reddy, however, stressed on maintaining international standards in the cultivation of the Sri Gandham gardens.
The State Horticulture Department would maintain the registry of farmers growing the sandalwood gardens in the State. That apart, he also asked the farmers to grow the herbal plants for which the State government will provide 95 per cent subsidy.
The Minister also said that the State government is drafting plans to give confidence to the youth to take up cultivation. "The State has focused on the agriculture allied sectors after the separate State formation.
When the agriculture sector is strengthened then only the incomes of the farmers will go up," he said. It was against this backdrop that the State government has implemented the Rythu Bandhu and Rythu Bhima for the welfare of the farmers.
Steps have been taken to make use of the opportunity as the State is suitable for cultivation of agroforestry and several other crops. It was in this direction that the State has given priority to the construction of the irrigation projects to meet the water demands of the expanding agriculture demand in the State.
Terming that the State has not witnessed any incident of farmers suicides, Niranjan Reddy said, following a series of efforts being taken up in the last five years the State is confidently moving forward for achieving the objective of Bangaru Telangana.