I'm starting this thread so that we could understand our water resources properly.. Currently there is no thread that aggregates all information in a single location. Source of most of this information is Water Resources Information System(WRIS) (http://irrigation.cgg.gov.in/jsp/wris.jsp) of AP I&CAD

A.P. Irrigation Overview Total Geographical area 2.75 Lakh Sq. Kms Total Irrigable area 393 Lakh Acres Present Irrigable Land 292 Lakh Acres Total area under Irrigation Sources 134 Lakh Acres ( 3/04 ) IP Created so far by I&CADD 111 Lakh Acres ( 3/04 ) Ultimate IP 217 Lakh Acres Dependable availability of water 2746 TMC Utilization 2092 TMC
Completed Major Projects (http://irrigation.cgg.gov.in/jsp/CompletedMajor.jsp)

Godavari Delta System
Kaddam
K.C. Canal Project
Nagarjunasagar Project
Nizamsagar Project
Pennar Delta System
Prakasam Barrage (Krishna Delta System)
Rajolibanda Diversion Scheme (RDS)
RDS Link Canal
Sriramasagar Project
NSRSP (SRISAILAM PROJECT)
Tungabhadra Project High Level Canal
Tungabhadra Project Low Level Canal
VAMSADHARA
Yeleru Reservoir Project


Srisailam Project
http://img535.imageshack.us/img535/2603/srisailamproject.jpg
Godavari Delta Project
http://img402.imageshack.us/img402/9845/godavaridelta.jpg
Pedderu
http://img854.imageshack.us/img854/5506/phpedderu.jpg
Upper Saligeruhttp://img714.imageshack.us/img714/7467/phuppersagileru.jpg
Tatipudi
http://img225.imageshack.us/img225/7956/tatipudi.jpg

@Prodigist, Thanks for the initiative to start this thread.

Can u post the names and locations of all 85 projects taken up under 'jalayagnam' programme? and then we can assess the status and development of those projects:)

Awesome thread!

Rs. 3,800 cr. for irrigation projects

NIZAMABAD: Minister for Major Irrigation P. Sudarshan Reddy has disclosed that the government, while according utmost importance to early completion of irrigation projects, has allotted Rs.3800 crore this year.

Participating in official programmes in Navipet, Renjal and Bodhan mandals on Friday, he said there was no dearth of funds.

©Hindu (http://www.hindu.com/2011/06/25/stories/2011062562970300.htm)


http://img847.imageshack.us/img847/7641/yo134.jpg (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=419068)

All set for water release to Krishna Eastern Delta


This is for the irrigation of crop in a notified area of 6 lakh acres

http://www.hindu.com/2011/06/25/images/2011062552470501.jpg
PHOTO: CH.VIJAYA BHASKAR.

Clogged: Water hyacinth that has collected in front of the eastern main canal head sluice a day before the irrigation department is set to release water to the delta for kharif in Vijayawada on Friday. —

VIJAYAWADA: Water will be released for the Krishna Eastern Delta except to the ayacut under the Krishna Eastern Bank Canal (KEB) on Saturday morning. Secondary Education Minister K. Parthasarathi will flip the switch to raise the gates of the Krishna Eastern Main Head sluice to release the water at 9 a.m. as per the schedule issued here.

The Prakasam Barrage Irrigation Advisory Board (IAB) which met on June 17 decided that water should be released to the eastern delta on June 25 and to the ayacut of the KEB canal on July 3. The IAB decided that water would be released for the irrigation of crop in a notified area of 6 lakh acres.

According to figures put before the IAB, 40.11 tmcft were utilised for irrigating 7.30 lakh acres in Krishna and West Godavari district in Kharif 2010. However a surplus of 403.79 tmcft was released from Prakasam Barrage to the Bay of Bengal during the season.

Similarly 44.25 tmcft were utilised for the irrigation of 2.5 lakh acres in Krishna and West Godavari districts and a surplus of 26.84 tmcft was released to the sea during the Rabi (2010-11) season.

Maintenance

The release of water to the Krishna Eastern Delta was stopped on May 17 for taking up operation, maintenance and delta modernisation works. A crop holiday was announced for farmers with lands in the ayacut of KEB canal. The release of water to KEB was postponed for the completion of modernisation works.

The releases from Nagarjuna Sagar Reservoir are being gradually increased since June 15. Increasing the discharge from 600 cusecs to 1,800 on June 17 the Irrigation Authorities have further increased releases to 2,500 from June 20.

The water released to the eastern delta will be drawn initially to fill drinking water tanks and then for irrigating seed beds.

©Hindu (http://www.hindu.com/2011/06/25/stories/2011062552470500.htm)

http://img847.imageshack.us/img847/7641/yo134.jpg (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=419068)

Kiran to inspect Hundri-Neeva works


KURNOOL: Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy will inspect Hundri-Neeva project at Malyala on Saturday which is in the final stage of execution.

The Chief Minister has decided to visit the place and review the project implementation in the wake of criticism for undue delay in starting the canal works that would provide irrigation and drinking water to the severe drought-prone areas in Kurnool, Anantapur and Chittoor districts. The first phase creates an irrigation potential of 80,000 acres in Kurnool and 1.18 lakh acres in Anantapur district utilising 14 tmcft from the foreshore of Srisailam project.

The first phase of the canal include pumping station and canal to a distance of 225 km involving a cost of Rs. 2,774 crore. So far, the department utilised Rs. 1,908.91 crore. The project is likely to be commissioned in August if every thing goes as per the schedule. Twelve giant motors were installed at the pumping station to discharge 3,850 cusecs at the rate of 321 cusecs per pumpset. The pumping station required 60 MW power at the rate of 5 MW per unit. After inspection at the pumping station, the Chief Minister will fly to Banaganapalli to participate in local programmes.

©Hindu (http://www.hindu.com/2011/06/25/21hdline.htm)


http://img847.imageshack.us/img847/7641/yo134.jpg (http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=419068)

Irrigation projects reviewed

Minister wants notices issued to contractors for delay in completing projects
Chief Minister keen on early completion of the Pranahitha-Chevella Project

Kiran accorded approval for the project costing Rs.38,000 crore: Minister

Focus on projects:Major Irrigation Minister P. Sudarshan Reddy at the review meeting in Nizamabad on Sunday.
SRI RAM SAGAR PROJECT (NIZAMABAD DT.): Minister for Major Irrigation P. Sudarshan Reddy has said that Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy was very keen on the early completion of the Pranahitha-Chevella Project and accorded approval for the project costing Rs.38,000 crore. The project once completed would irrigate 16 lakh acres spreading over five Telangana districts.

At a high-level review meeting on the progress of works of various irrigation projects in Telangana, held here on Sunday, the Minister said as regards the Pranahitha-Chevella project, three packages lie in the Nizamabad district and through which over three lakh acres could be irrigated. Efforts were on to complete the first package starting at Binola in Navipet mandal in next two years, the Minister said.

For Sri Ram Sagar Phase-II Rs.650 crore was allocated and if it were completed water could be given up to Suryapet in Nalgonda district. However, its work was delayed following the slow pace in land acquisition in Warangal, he said. As regards the Yellampally, Mr. Sudarshan Reddy said shutters problem arose in the project canal work and it would be finished at the earliest. Three lifts were fixed at a cost of Rs.1,157 crore and land acquisition still remained a problem. Under Phase-I, 65 per cent work has been completed, he said and told the authorities to focus on expediting the remaining work. For the Phase-II Rs.2,003 crore was allocated and under both Phase-I and Phase-II 1.23 lakh acres and 1.55 lakh acres respectively could be irrigated. As for Jagannathpur project in Adilabad district out of the estimated cost of Rs.180 crore so far Rs.70 crore was spent and 19 gates were to be set up to the reservoir. After going through the reports submitted by engineering authorities and contractors of different projects the Minister sought to attribute the slow pace in progress of works to the negligence of the contributors. Directing the authorities to issue notices to the contractors for the delay in completion of projects he said there must be remarkable progress within two months.

Minister for Civil Supplies D. Sreedhar Babu, MLAs E. Anil (Balkonda), Arepalli Mohan (Manakondur) and Maheswar Reddy (Nirmal), Principal Secretary, Irrigation, Adityanath Das, E-in-Cs E.S.N Reddy and P.S.R. Subramaniam, Sudheer, Commissioner (Godavari basin), Chief Engineers Satyanand, E. Mallikarjun Rao, Hatheeram, Narayan Reddy and Mohan Reddy participated.

©Hindu (http://www.hindu.com/2011/06/27/stories/2011062755590300.htm)

Modernisation of Godavari delta plagued with hurdles

Rajahmundry: With farmers reluctant to observe crop holiday in the rabi season, officials were puzzled how to take up Godavari Delta modernisation works in the two Godavari districts. The officials of Godavari Delta Irrigation System have planned to declare crop holiday for next rabi and take up the modernisation works from December.

The response from contractors for these works was poor. They argued that the works could not be completed in six months.The contractors and irrigation officials contend that crop holiday for two rabi seasons was necessary to complete modernisation works.

Even if the government declares crop holiday for next rabi season, the possibility of farmers conceding to the proposal is slim.
Some of them have already declared crop holiday during kharif and did not get support price for their produce.

The modernisation includes irrigation canals, drains, outfall sluices, locks, culverts and other works in East and West Godavari districts. Though the project was prepared two years ago, works were not taken up in a big way. The government is giving priority to the project as it prevents inundation of fields by drains and irrigation canals during heavy rains and floods.

Crop loss due to inundation was reported during the previous four kharif seasons. Even though the delta modernisation was proposed decades ago, it could not materialise so far.

http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=2&ContentId=703

63 crest gates of barrage raised

http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/00764/25VZVIJCITYREG2WATE_764280f.jpg
VIJAYAWADA, 24/08/2011 SAFE SPOT: An adventurer stands on the spot where water released through crest gates overflows the dividing wall of scovur sluices of Prakasam Barrage in Vijayawada on Wednesday. Photo: Ch.Vijaya Bhaskar.

The Irrigation authorities had to raise 63 crest gates of the Prakasam Barrage to release the surplus water being received from the upper reaches here on Wednesday. The tail pond of Prakasam Barrage received over 50,000 cusecs from Nagarjuna Sagar and rivulets that empty into the river between the reservoir and the barrage.

While the irrigation authorities diverted about 10,000 cusecs into the canals irrigating the delta the surplus water had to be released by raising the crest gates.

The inflow at the barrage dropped towards the evening with the authorities lowering 20 gates reducing the discharge from the barrage to 33,000 cusecs.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Vijayawada/article2395813.ece

Source: IBNLive

NALGONDA: It was like a festive atmosphere near Nagarjuna Sagar Project (NSP) as a large number of tourists turned up to witness the lifting of all 26 crest gates of NSP on Monday.
More than 1,000 people from Nalgonda, Guntur and Hyderabad flocked the Nagarjuna Sagar to have a sight of the heavy floods and lifting of gates.
The tourists reached NSP by four and two wheelers.
However, project authorities did not allow them on the project in view of the ministers' visit. However, around 600 to 700 people could reach the top of the project.
An equal number of people went beneath the project to have a downside view.
Major Irrigation Minister Sudharshan Reddy had formally lifted the gates and released the water into the Prakasam Barrage. NSP has been receiving huge inflows for the last few days, the gates of which have been lifted and water released for the farmers.
The state government has also agreed to provide irrigation water for the second crop under NSP due to heavy inflows. The minister later said that he was happy that all projects have been filled with water in the state.
Sudharshan Reddy, Panchayat Raj minister Jana Reddy and Infrastructure minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy had released 3 lakh cusecs of water through the 26 crest gates at a height of seven feet.
Sudharshan Reddy said that Nagarjuna Sagar water has been utilized for 31 lakhs acres of agricultural land and to produce hydel power.
Since the reservoir has been getting huge inflows, water would also be released for the second crop, he assured the farmers.
Jana Reddy said due to heavy inflows, canal modernisation works were delayed, he said. The World Bank has sanctioned `4,444 crores for the modernisation of the project canal.

Source: Orissadiary


Hyderabad: The Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy today directed the irrigation and Energy department to step up and maximise hydro power in the State. The Energy department officials today said that hydro power generation has vastly increased thanks to the copious rains in some parts of the State.
The Chief Minister had a detailed review of latest issues of Power Sector with top officials at Secretariat. The Chief Minister wanted the irrigation and energy department to give wide publicity to the details of inflow into the reservoirs and about the hydro power generation etc. so that people will get to know about this on a day-to-day basis. The Chief Minister also asked the officials to take steps to cope up with the energy demands well in advance particularly in the coming summer months when the demands from the agriculture sector will also be at its peak coinciding with examination time for students. He wanted the officials to tie-up for power purchases anticipating shortages in the summer months. Principal Secretary, Energy, Dinesh Kumar, Principal Secretary, Finance, V Bhasker, CMD, AP Transco, Ajay Jain, MD, AP Genco, K Vijayanand, Joint MD, AP Transco, K Ranganadham, MD, NEDCAP, Chandan Mitra, Member-Secretary, Energy Coordination Cell, Chandrasekhara Reddy and other officials attended themeting.
The Chief Minister wanted that farmers, students and domestic sector should not be put to any kind of difficulties and advance measures should be taken to meet the peak power demands. He also wanted the wind energy generation to be stepped up to its capacity of 1500 mw and there is a huge scope to install wind power plants in the State. He said a policy should be worked out for power purchase since we are giving a lot of concession to the thermal power projects and it should be beneficial to the State Government. The Chief Minister directed the officials to see that Transmission and distribution losses to be cut to the minimum possible since it "one unit saved is one unit generated".
He wanted meters to be installed at all transformers and substations and this should be taken as a pilot project and completed at some of the districts like Chittoor, Kadapa etc where it was already taken up. Mr Kiran Kumar Reddy said while the State Government is determined to continue free power supply to the agriculture sector in spite of heavy subsidies since it helps the farmers, there should not be any wastage, pilferage and transmission losses. There should be accountability and transparency in the power supply to farmers. The Chief Minister also wanted that details regarding free power supply to farmers including the schedule and timings should be put on the website. There also should be CALL CENTRE like arrangement so that the farmers can call and inform about the transformer burning etc. The power officials and linemen should immediately attend to the complaints. While so much crores are being spent on this, we should also make it transparent and all complaints should be attended to immediately so that the Energy department can keep its credibility. He wanted GPS system also to be introduced to the vehicles of the sub-stations which changes the faulty transformers. The Chief Minister would take up the issue of coal like long-term linkage to the thermal plants in the State with Union Minister for coal, Mr Jaiswal and also supply of gas to power projects with the Union Minister for Petroleum & Natural Gas, Jaipal Reddy during his forthcoming visit to Delhi. Agricultural Supply: There are 9438 number of 11kv feeders emanating from 33/11kv Substations which meet the agriculture demand. The daily data regarding supply is being obtained from the Operators manning the 33/11kV Substations and there is no regular check regarding the correctness of the data except when specific complaints are made. All Discoms have been instructed to download the data from the meters provided on the 11kV rural feeders once in a month and exceptional reports generated will be reviewed personally by CMDs/ Discoms and Directors/Operation. Action plan is being prepared by AP Discoms for installation of Automatic Meter Reading (AMR) facility whereby online data can be transferred from the feeders. This would be completed within a period of next 4 months. There are 29.46 lakh agricultural services existing in the State by end of August, 2011. 37646 agricultural services were released against the target of 1.5 Lakhs during 2011-12 up to August, 2011. R-APDRP--Make Accountable: The Chief Minister instructed the officials to complete the Restructured --Accelerated Power Development and Reforms Programme (R-APDRP) strictly by the stipulated schedule i.e. by February 2012. He has also asked to make responsible the agencies and the officials in case of delay in the completion of the programme as the loan sanctioned by the Government of India will not be converted as a grant if not completed by February, 2012. Replacement of Sick Distribution Transformers: There are a total of 8.37 lakh transformers in the State against which 33,483 transformers shall be maintained as a rolling stock. Only 24, 772 transformers are available in the rolling stock as on end of August, 2011. The problem is more acute in Medak, Mahabubnagar & Nalgonda districts of CPDCL and Nizamabad, Karimnagar & Warangal districts of NPDCL. Discoms have been instructed to keep sufficient rolling stock of transformers at the sub-division level and asked to replace the failed transformers using the utility vehicle already available with the concerned sub-division. Similarly, Discoms have been instructed to open additional Special Maintenance/ repair sheds at the division and sub-division level, so that healthy DTRs are available for timely replacement. Efforts are being made by APTransco and AP Discoms to get a universal number like 104 and 108. Till such time, the phone number of Load Monitoring Cell in the district which is working round the clock will be informed to public. In SPDCL and EPDCL, efforts would be made to streamline the entire system by 15th of September and in CPDCL and NPDCL by 15th of October. High Voltage Distribution System (HVDS): High Voltage Distribution System (HVDS) for ensuing better quality of supply to Agricultural pumpsets is under implementation in the State. HVDS is already implemented for 6.89 lakh pumpsets at a cost of Rs.2204 crores out of a total of 29.50 lakh agricultural pumpsets existing in the State. A Project for a loan assistance of Rs.988 crores under Overseas Development Authority (ODA) package for implementation of HVDS in 16 districts for 2.43 lakh pumpsets has been sanctioned by Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA). The Project implementation will commence by January, 2012. Rajiv Gandhi Grameen VidyutikaranYojana (RGGVY): Andhra Pradesh State is No.1 in the country in RGGVY in release of BPL services. The scheme validity is up to 30th June, 2011. At present there are no approved projects/schemes for electrification of left over rural/ BPL households, SC, ST & Weaker Section Colonies and Indiramma Colonies. Government of AP have requested Government of India for further continuation of RGGVY for electrification of leftover SC, ST, Weaker Section Colonies and BPL Services.

Source: http://ibnlive.in.com/generalnewsfeed/news/indira-jala-prabha-irrigation-scheme-launched-in-ap/843714.html

Ongole (AP), Oct 2 (PTI) The Andhra Pradesh government today launched an ambitious scheme to provide irrigation facility to the lands distributed to the poor from SC and ST communities. Named 'Indira Jala Prabha', the scheme was kicked off by Union Health Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad and Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy at Jangalapalle village in Yerragondapalem mandal in Prakasam district. Under the scheme, the state government would provide irrigation facility to 10 lakh acres of land in the next three years and that six lakh SC and ST families would be benefited by it, Reddy said. The scheme is being implemented with Rs 1,800 crore and NABARD would provide Rs 887 crore of it. The Chief Minister expressed his happiness that the programme is being launched on the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, who strived hard to root out untouchability. The 'Indira Jala Prabha' scheme would herald good tidings in the lives of the poor, he said. Speaking on the occasion, Azad appreciated the Kiran Kumar Reddy government for introducing the scheme. The Chief Minister also announced a new scheme, as per which, the state government would bear the interest to be paid by farmers for a loan upto Rs one lakh, if the loan repayment pattern is good. The 'zero interest' scheme, to be implemented from 2011 Rabi season, would benefit 95 lakh farmers, he said. Officials said 95 per cent of the state's farmers take loans below Rs one lakh and the scheme would benefit them. The remaining five per cent of farmers, who borrow loans over Rs one lakh, would also be benefited by the 'zero interest' scheme, as it would apply up to the Rs one lakh taken by them. The state government would pay between Rs 650 crore and Rs 700 crore to the banks towards the interest payable by the farmers, they added.

Source: http://ibnlive.in.com/news/polavaram-tender-saves-government-rs-600-crore/194788-60-114.html

HYDERABAD: The state government on Wednesday awarded a contract worth Rs. 4,717 crore to SEW, an infrastructure and construction company, to execute four major components of the Polavaram irrigation project.
�The government claimed it made a saving of Rs 600 crore by conducting the tender process for the contract in a transparent manner.
SEW was the lowest bidder for the four works, quoting 12.6 per cent less than the total value of the work.
SEW emerged the lowest bidder among the four firms that had been short-listed from a total of seven companies which filed tenders for the works.
The works for the contracts that were awarded to SEW are: spillway, head work, earth-cum-rock fill dam and excavation of hydel generation block.
The government said it has saved Rs 600 crore, enough to bankroll its new pet Rs 1 per kilogram rice scheme for at least a year, through the tendering process.
The Polavaram project is intended to create a new ayacut of 7.2 lakh acres and stabilisation of 25 lakh acres of the ayacut in the Krishna and Godavari delta.
�The project will generate 960 mw of power and provide drinking water facility to 500 villages, sources said.

Source: http://in.finance.yahoo.com/news/nabard-sanctions-rs-2-3-123908335.html

Chennai/ Hyderabad: The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has granted Rs 2.3 billion aid to fund the Andhra Pradesh Micro-Irrigation Project, which is being implemented through the horticulture department in the state.
NABARD has sanctioned the loan under its Rural Infrastructure Development Fund - XVII to provide micro-irrigation facilities in 114,000 hectare of cultivated land, benefiting 697,631 farmers across 22 districts in the state.
The micro-irrigation facilities include drip-online, drip-inline, rain guns, micro and mini sprinklers and semi-permanent sprinklers.
The Andhra Pradesh Micro-Irrigation Project is the biggest micro-irrigation project sanctioned by NABARD under the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund and it is expected to upgrade the state gross domestic product (GDP) by Rs 2.87 billion.
NABARD has so far granted loans worth Rs 13.46 billion to the Andhra Pradesh government during the current financial year 2011-12, exceeding the initial standard allocation of Rs 8.80 billion.

Illegal Water Projects (http://pib.nic.in/newsite/erelease.aspx?relid=87087)

The Govt. of Andhra Pradesh vide their letter dated 27.5.2005 brought to the notice of Central Water Commission (CWC) that Government of Maharashtra had taken up construction of 11 new barrages across main river Godavari including Babhali Barrage close to the fringe of Sriram Sagar reservoir in Andhra Pradesh in violation of the inter-state agreement dated 6.10.1975 between the two States. In this connection, last stage inter-State meeting was proposed by CWC in May, 2010 to resolve the issue. The meeting was not held as Government of Maharashtra informed that the matter of utilization of 60 TMC of Godavari waters by Maharashtra is sub-judice in the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India and as such, it is not appropriate to hold any meetings in this regard. A proposal namely Upper Krishna Project Stage-III, Karnataka for utilization of 130.9 TMC of water in accordance with decision of Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal (KWDT)-II from Almatti Reservoir which involves raising FRL of Dam from 519.6 m to 524.256 m has been received. The proposal is not acceptable since the allocation of 130.9 TMC against which the water is proposed to be utilized is not made in the decision of KWDT-I.

This information was given by the Minister of State for Water Resources and Minority Affairs Shri Vincent H. Pala in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today.

State to procure raw rice directly from millers (http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/andhra-pradesh/article3854971.ece)

15 lakh tonnes will be routed through PDS under the new decentralised procurement policy

For the first time, the Andhra Pradesh State Civil Supplies Corporation will directly procure 15 lakh tonnes of raw rice from rice millers for its public distribution system under the new decentralised procurement policy.

Normally, the Food Corporation of India procures levy rice, both for supply to fair price shops under the PDS in the State and for the central pool.

As the State government is determined to roll out the Decentralised Procurement Policy from ensuing kharif marketing season -- to ensure minimum support price to farmers, quality Re.1 kg rice to customers in their own districts -- a preparatory meeting was held with Joint Collectors, District Supply Officers from 15 districts, officers of Food Corporation of India and rice millers here on Monday.

Objective

“The objective is to take views and inputs from all the stakeholders to finalise the procurement exercise keeping in view available storage capacity with the Food Corporation of India and the Civil Supplies Corporation in various districts,” said Civil Supplies Minister D. Sridhar Babu who chaired the meeting.

The decentralised procurement policy would be implemented in phases, beginning with procurement of 15 lakh tonnes of rice from October. “We plan to procure the entire 40 lakh tonnes of raw rice required for PDS in the State in the next one or two years, once the storage capacity is upgraded,” he said.

For the 15 lakh tonnes of rice to be stored in different districts, the FCI agreed to give a few of its godowns to the Civil Supplies Corporation which had its own storage space of five lakh tonnes. The corporation would also strengthen the mandal level stock points by constructing godowns scientifically.

The FCI agreed to depute its manpower and also train Civil Supplies Corporation staff in procurement process before the kharif marketing season commenced. The corporation will also purchase superfine quality paddy, mill it and supply superfine quality rice through special counters at a reasonable price.

State: No crops in delta damaged (http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/hyderabad/state-no-crops-delta-damaged-127)

The state government on Monday told the AP High Court that no crop has been affected by paucity of water in Krishna Delta till date this season. Submitting a status report of Kharif crops in the state, especially crops in the Delta region, advocate-general A. Sudarshan Reddy said enough water was available in the Prakasam Barrage to take care of the crops in Krishna Delta for two weeks.

A Division Bench comprising acting Chief Justice P.C. Ghose and Justice Vilas V. Afzulpurkar was dealing with a PIL filed by MP Gutta Sukhender Reddy and Mir Hasan Ali Khan of Hyderabad city and others. The petitioners sought the court's direction to the government not to release water from Nagarjunasagar without catering to the city's drinking water needs and fluoride-affected villages of Nalgonda district.

In August, the Bench directed the government not to release water downstream from Srisailam and Nagarjunasagar if the water level falls below 834 feet and 510 feet, respectively. Referring to the orders, Mr Sudarshan Reddy said the government maintains water level at the reservoirs as directed by the court. At present, he said, the water level at Nagarjunasagar is above 510 feet, while the level at Srisailam is high enough to start power generation.

Notices to Tribal welfare, DGP
The AP High Court on Monday issued notices to the DGP and tribal welfare commissioner on a petition by the Indian Child Welfare Forum seeking the intervention of the court in protecting innocent tribal boys and girls from exploitation. The taken up petition said activists of revolutionary organisations were compelling them to join Left-wing extremist parties. The court granted two weeks’ to the respondents to file their affidavits.

HC seeks report on Congress MLA
The AP High Court on Monday directed the vigilance department to furnish a report on the inquiry conducted on Congress legislator U.V. Ramanamurthy Raju. The court was dealing with a petition by 17 MPTC members of the district, seeking a probe by the CBI and I-T authorities, into alleged illegal acquisition of properties worth thousands of cror-es of rupees by the MLA. They said that Mr Raju amassed wealth by diverting funds sanctioned to the weaker sections, which was proved by the inquiry. The petitioners alleged that the MLA had purchased lands in the surrounding areas of Visak-hapatnam, obtaining GPA from poor and illiterate farmers. Likewise, he acquired hundreds of acres by misusing his position, they said. They also alleged that no action was being taken by the government though there was a vigilance report.

Baba Trust: HC seeks more info
A Division Bench, comprising acting Chief Justice P.C. Ghose and Justice Vilas Afzulpu-rkar, on Monday directed K. Ramesh, a petitioner seeking a CBI probe into the affairs of the Sathya Sai Seva Trust, to inform the court whether the trust had ever been under the jurisdiction of any government department. Ramesh, a devotee of Sathya Sai Baba, sought a direction to have the CBI investigate the alleged irregularities committed by members of the Sri Sathya Sai Baba Central Trust and also into the cause of the demise of the godman at Puttaparthi in April 2011.

The Bench asked the petitioner to explain whether the trust was registered and within the jurisdiction of the endowments department and whether the government had ever examined these affairs earlier. The Bench granted a week to respond its queries.

Civic chief jailed for contempt
Justice Ramesh Ranganathan on Monday sentenced Kadapa Municipal Corporation commissioner Samson Babu to two weeks’ simple imprisonment in a contempt case. While allowing the contempt case by V. Nagamuni Reddy, a resident of Kadapa, the judge did not appreciate the manner in which the officer had violated the orders of the court and then went about trying to justify the action. The petitioner said that the Corporation demolished his compound wall, based on a complaint, but no inquiry was conducted to ascertain whether the compound wall was or not within the road margins. The sentence was suspended for a month.

State gets notice on road mishaps
The High Court on Monday issued notices to the state government on a plea seeking directions that it set up a high level regulatory agency to minimise road accidents. The Bench was dealing with the plea by one Padmaja, representing the Forum for Better Living.

Disaster management project in Andhra Pradesh soon (http://ibnlive.in.com/news/disaster-management-project-in-ap-soon/290625-62-127.html)

Hyderabad: Work pertaining to the National Cyclone Risk Mitigation Project (NCRMP) in Andhra Pradesh will commence by December last week and the tender process is expected to be completed by last week of September. Andhra Pradesh and Orissa are the two states that have been chosen for the first phase of the World Bankassisted programme, which is a part of the national disaster management. In the state, the project will be implemented with an outlay of Rs 758 crore, of which 25 percent will be borne by the state government. The project cost for the first phase is Rs 1496.71 crore and it will be increased as the project progresses.
Speaking to mediapersons, National Disaster Management Authority (NMDA) member VK Duggal expressed his satisfaction over the progress of work so far. “There were some technical problems like e-procurement and tendering process, which are being sorted out. There is need to speed up the work, which is being done,” he said.
According to VK Duggal, east coast of the country is more vulnerable to cyclones than west coast and among the states of east coast, Andhra Pradesh and Orissa had borne the brunt of cyclone fury in the past several decades. He said that in last 100 years, there were 103 cyclones in the state, which is why it has been chosen for the initial implementation of the national project. “The project has to be completed by 2015 and several systems are being put in place to ensure that interdepartmental cooperation is there during the crisis period,” he said.
Work on the National Cyclone Risk Mitigation Project (NCRMP) in Andhra Pradesh will commence by December.
Considering the importance of rescue and relief operations during natural or man made disasters, the strength of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) is being raised from the 10 battalions to 12 in the country.

Nagarjunasagar modernisation promises prosperity (http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-andhrapradesh/article3895426.ece)

Source: The Hindu (http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-andhrapradesh/article3895426.ece)
http://imageshack.us/a/img560/5950/nsae.jpg

If many irrigation projects taken up under the ‘Jalayagnam’ are mired in one issue or the other, an unrelated project just two years old is promising to usher in several innovative changes in not only water management but also livelihood issues.

The Nagarjunasagar modernisation project with part funding by the World Bank is not a mere brick and mortar work of repairing canals or improving the irrigation service delivery by preventing wastage of water.

It is being undertaken with an ambitious plan to increase the ayacut, improve farm outputs using the latest technology, encourage cultivation of fruits & vegetables crops, increase fish yield in the reservoir besides ensuring proper utilisation of available water to all the head, middle and tail end areas equitably by empowering the beneficiaries to become decision makers.

Titled as the A.P. Water Sector Improvement Project (APWSIP), the Rs.4, 444.41 crore project with the WB loan of Rs.2, 025 crore and the Government share of Rs.2, 419 crore, in a six year span proposes to deal the entire gamut of operations of the biggest multi-purpose irrigation project on a sustainable basis.

Mega project

“Five districts, five lakh farmers and 22 lakh acres are dependent on the dam. It’s a challenging project as we have just 90 days in a year to undertake any repairs. The objective is to see that both the landholder and non-landholder benefit,” explains Project Director G. Malsur.

The dam is key for the State as it provides water for irrigation, industries, domestic use and also generates 960 MW.

Modernisation was felt necessary as the canals have lost the designed carrying capacity to 32.5 per cent due to leakages, seepages, damage to structures, extensive vegetation making it inaccessible for repairs, over irrigation in head reaches resulting in excess drawals and so on.

Water was also not reaching the tail end areas resulting in a gap of four lakh, likely to increase by one per cent each year without repairs.

Ever since the works began in September 2010, contracts have been awarded for the main and branch canal works, dam safety works at a cost of Rs, 1,100 crore.

Strengthening banks, cement lining, replacing gates and other equipment, measuring devices, proportional distributor structures, command and communication system, etc., form part of the works. The project aims to increase the canal carrying capacity to 50 per cent, increase crop yields from 15 per cent to 25 per cent of the five major crops of paddy, cotton, maize, groundnut and pulses with the help of Acharya N.G. Ranga Agricultural University; milk production to 10 per cent (three per cent now), fish to 150 kg/ha (40 kg/ha) in reservoirs.

Paddy production cost in AP higher than MSP: RBI study (http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/states/article3922826.ece)

MUMBAI, SEPT. 21:
The cost of production of paddy in Andhra Pradesh was higher than the minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 1,080 a quintal in the last year mainly because of higher expenditure on wages, says the latest study undertaken by the RBI’s research wing.

Andhra Pradesh is one of the leading producing States in the country.

The study, conducted by the Development Research Group (DRG) of RBI, also said the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) has underestimated the production cost of paddy for the State while recommending MSP to the Centre.

“A considerable rise in the demand for labour in the non- agricultural sector, implementation of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme and migration have also resulted in a sharp rise in wage costs, and thereby pushed up the cost of cultivation,” the report said.

The DRG report titled “Pricing of Paddy: A Case Study of Andhra Pradesh” has been prepared by Ramana Murthy and Rekha Misra. A sample survey was undertaken covering 192 households in 13 villages from eight districts.

Highlighting that the agrarian structure in Andhra Pradesh was dominated by small and marginal farmers, the report said: “The average cost of production of paddy in the state during 2011-12 was above MSP. The MSP covered only paid-out costs...the cost of cultivation has gone up in the State, irrespective of the region.”

In order to ensure better price to paddy growers, the DRG report has suggested assigning procurement operations to self-help groups in selected locations could be experimented for the State as a whole.

Farmers union from Andhra Pradesh lobbied for FDI (http://postnoon.com/2012/09/28/ap-ryots-body-behind-fdi-decision/76364)

Farmers are joining the kirana shop owners’ struggle against the FDI in multibrand retail. Farmers’ apex body met in Delhi on Tuesday and decided to hit the streets as MNC retail giants will ‘debilitate farmers’.

A farmers’ association in Hyderabad played a ‘villainous’ role in impelling the government to allow FDI in multibrand retail. “Two farmers’ organisations, one in Delhi and the other in Hyderabad, funded by the MNCs had lobbied strongly for the decision,” disclosed Yudhvir Singh, Asia Coordinator of International Farmers Alliance.

Singh said the two associations had been working behind the scenes for furthering the interests of the foreign retail giants who have lost ground in their own lands. He questioned why the UPA government was bartering our retailers’ rights for a few dollars. “Which farmers’ interests are they talking about?” “Why,” Singh asked, “the government did not consult farmers and rush through the decision if it had nothing to hide.” He said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s address on this aspect was the most irresponsible and cruel statement claiming the government knows the best.

Meanwhile, a new dimension is added to the kirana shops’ anguish against FDI in retail. Farmer leaders of six farmer organisations across the country that met in New Delhi on Tuesday this week to discuss the ramifications of the UPA government’s decision to allow FDI in multibrand retail have decided to join the Kirana shop owners’ protest and come out to the streets to make the government reconsider the decision.

A joint action council of all farmer bodies will meet on October 10 to chalk out an agitational path, said MJ Khan, national convener of Federation of Indian Farmers Organisations.

Khan cited the data of International Farms Comparison Network (ICFN), which proves how within 14 years in US and in UK, the share of farmers in the consumer spent for farm produce reduced by almost 40 per cent from 1996 to 2010.

Khan said that today the farmers’ leaders just want to know how this decision will benefit them, without taking any stand. The final stand will be taken on October 10, 2012 in the National Convention of Farmers, where all the farmers’ organisations from across the country will be jointly hosting the meet under FIFO and all political parties as well as these corporations would be invited to speak on this issue.

Krishanbir Chowdhary, president of Bhartiya Krishak Samaj said that no farmers’ organisation was consulted on such an important issue and the UPA government is saying that it will benefit farmers. He asked, how the nuclear deal, SEZ land grab project and similar other hastily rushed in decisions have benefited the farmers? He sought to know that Walmart is showing `54 crore spent on lobbying in India, then on whom this money was spent, and lobbying being an illegal activity, how the same has been permitted. He said that if farmers are not consulted and clarified their doubts, then farmers will come on streets under Join Action Plan of all Farmers Bodies, after the National meet under FIFO on 10 Oct, 2012.

Soybean production to be higher at 1.26 crore tonne this Kharif season (http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/economy/agriculture/soybean-production-to-be-higher-at-1-26-crore-tonne-this-kharif-season/articleshow/16641406.cms)

AHMEDABAD: India will produce 1.26 crore tonne of soybean compared to 1.16 crore tonne during the last Kharif season, an estimate by Soybean Processors Association of India (SOPA) says.

Madhya Pradesh will account for 66.86 lakh tonne of the total estimated production. Top soybean producing states will see a rise in production and Maharashtra, the second largest producer, can see 40 lakh tonne of production against the 35.60 lakh tonne last season. The season ended on September 30.

Higher production is estimated in Andhra Pradesh (2.1 lakh tonne), Karnataka (2.2 lakh tonne), Chattisgarh (1.75 lakh tonne) and Gujarat (92,000 tonne). Rajasthan, however, may see a fall in crop with SOPA estimating a marginal drop to 12.32 lakh tonne from 12.48 lakh tonne last year.

"Soybean gave higher returns to farmers in last season compared to cotton and hence sowing has been increased. However, due to delayed rain, cultivation could not go up significantly," said Rajesh Agrawal, spokesperson of SOPA.

Compared to 1.03 crore hectares of sowing during 2011 kharif, India saw a 1.07 lakh hectares (4% higher) sowing in this year. "Soybean is less risky than cotton and needs lower input costs," added Mr Agrawal.

India is fifth-largest producer of soybean in the world and has been adding area under soybean sowing since 2000. Production and productivity levels went up in past few years, but the country is still far behind China's productivity levels of 2,500 kg per hectare.

The top producers are US, Brazil, China and Argentina. As per the SOPA prediction, India will see rise in productivity level to 1,185 kg per hectare versus 1,127 kg of 2011-12. MP will see 1,150 kg (1,076 kg last year) per hectare while Maharashtra will produce 1,243 kg (1,163 kg).

However, productivity level will go down to 1,249 kg per hectare from 1,393 kg of last kharif in Rajasthan. Excessive rain in the parts of Rajasthan and MP impacted the productivity level, said Mr Agrawal.

Soybean is a low oil content edible seed and has average oil recovery level of 15%. Thus, with a 10 lakh tonne of higher seed production, the country can have 1.5 lakh tonne of higher soybean oil for the kharif year. India is fulfilling half of its edible oil requirements by exporting 90 lakh tonne of edible oil, majorly palm oil.

Soybean November delivery futures closed in 4% lower circuit on NCDEX to Rs 3,075. Soybean witnessed sharp fall in prices since early September and touched a high of Rs 4,500 during late August.

Cotton output may rise marginally (http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/cotton-output-may-rise-marginally/488335/)

Cotton production may go up by three to four per cent to a maximum of 33.5 to 34 million bales following monsoon recovery in Saurashtra and parts of Maharashtra.

According to sources in the ministry of agriculture, the first advance estimate has projected cotton production at 33.4 million bales that may go up a little. The latest data will be released in another fortnight’s time.

On the other hand, the Cotton Advisory Board (CAB), under the ministry of textiles, will meet tomorrow to finalise the cotton production data for the current season. Officials said the first advance estimate was calculated on an acreage of 11.5-11.6 million hectares, which has gone up towards the end of September.
During the kharif monsoon season, major cotton growing states like Gujarat, Vidarbha (Maharashtra) and Karnataka received scanty rainfall that subdued the cotton crop. But, towards September the rainfall improved and acreage went up in Gujarat, said sources.

CAB, in its last meeting in August, has estimated cotton production to increase nine per cent to 35.5 million bales (of 180-kg each) in the cotton season 2011-12, beginning October. Total cotton supply, including imports of 0.5 million bales and opening stock of 4.75 million bales, is expected to touch 40.75 million bales against the total demand of 35.1 million bales. Despite expectations of higher output, export estimate was retained at seven million bales.

The country, till date has exported a total of around 13 million bales of cotton. However, due to rising domestic prices, imports also started towards June-July. Till date, a total of one to 1.2 million bales have been contracted for imports.

In 2010-11, the area under cotton cultivation in the north zone, including Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan, was down seven per cent at 1.36 million hectares (mh). In the central zone that includes Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, it increased seven per cent to 7.22 mh, while in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu (south zone) it was up 20.50 per cent at 2.45 mh. Cotton output in the north zone was down three per cent at 3.9 mb. It was up 12.85 per cent at 20.2 mb in the central zone and down five per cent at 6.8 mb in the south zone. Contribution from Orissa and other states doubled to 0.2 mb each, leading to a total production of 31.3 mb.

CAB, in its last meeting, did not make any crop estimates of cotton for the year 2012-13 (October-September) sighting severe drought in major cotton growing areas in west India.

Since then it was felt total acreage may fall to 11.03 million hectares.

Mill consumption for the current cotton year is low and estimated to be at 21.7 million bales compared with 22.1 million bales last year.

Non-mill consumption for the current cotton year is estimated at 1.6 million bales, the same as last year.

Total demand for cotton is estimated at 38.2 million bales against 33.8 million bales last year.

Assocham recommends measures to tap fisheries potential (http://twocircles.net/2012oct02/assocham_recommends_measures_tap_fisheries_potential.html)

Hyderabad : India's fish production is set to cross 13 million tonnes by 2016 from the current nine million tonnes, says a study by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry (ASSOCHAM).

The apex industry body, however, suggested to the government to take measures to improve infrastructure and offer incentives to tap the immense potential of the fisheries sector.

According to the study 'A prize catch in Indian export basket', released here Tuesday, the fish production in the country can grow at a Compounded Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of about seven percent in the next four to five years provided the government takes appropriate steps.

The current CAGR is 3.5 percent.

Assocham national secretary general D.S. Rawat told reporters that appropriate measures would help the sector tapping the full employment and foreign exchange earning potential.

He pointed out that exports account for only eight percent of the total fish production in India.

"While the total global fish trade is estimated at $138 billion, India's exports are a meagre $3 billion," he said.

The study projected that India's exports would go up to $4.7 billion by 2014.

India ranks second in fish production but far behind China, which is also leading in aquaculture production.

Globally India's share in fisheries production is about five percent and marine/inland fishery exports account for a meagre two percent of the global trade.

The study highlighted the fact that bottlenecks in distribution and low annual average production, together with inadequate infrastructure, are hampering the growth of the sector.

Assocham has suggested creation of a separate ministry to remove the bottlenecks. It recommended setting up of a centralised coordinating agency to guide all stakeholders and for training and skill development.

"Absence of organised retail in fish trade and age-old system of distribution is resulting in high wastage and spoilage," said Rawat.

He said the measures would give a better price to fishermen and help improve their standard of life. The sector employs over 15 million people.

The industry body has suggested to the government to extend incentives for aquaculture and inland fisheries to achieve higher growth rate and offset the lower growth in marine fisheries.

"Indian marine waters are home to over 1,700 fish species, including 200 commercially significant species," said R. Sannareddy, chairman of Assocham southern regional council.

About 67 percent of the total fish produced in India is consumed in the fresh form due to low demand for value added products and about six percent is converted into fishmeal.

Processed and dried fish accounts for 16 percent and seven to 10 percent frozen, while a very small portion of less than one percent is canned.

The domestic demand for all types of fish is about 7.5 million tonnes currently and is likely to cross 10 million tonnes by 2016.

Among the states, West Bengal accounts for 20 percent of the fish production followed by Andhra Pradesh with 16 percent.

With a CAGR of about eight percent and with over 13.5 lakh tonnes of fish production annually, Andhra Pradesh ranks second in terms of growth.

Karnataka has the highest growth rate of fish production with about 11.48 percent CAGR.

With over 300-km-long coastline and six lakh hectares of inland waters and eight lakh fisher folk, Karnataka produces about five lakh tonnes of fish annually and accounts for over six percent of total fish production in India.

Paddy fields inundated in Krishna District (http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Vijayawada/paddy-fields-inundated-in-krishna-district/article3964281.ece)

Surplus water being released downstream Prakasam Barrage

Krishna Delta farmers who were, till recently, worried about getting enough water to irrigate their paddy are today having an excess dose.

About 10,000 hectares of paddy standing in the fields in several delta mandals has been inundated by the recent downpour.

The Irrigation authorities are releasing a surplus of about 48,000 cusecs downstream Prakasam Barrage.

Deputy Director of Agriculture N.Ch. Balu Naik , on Wednesday, told The Hindu that paddy in 10,000 hectares in the delta mandals of Gudooru, Pamarru, Gudlavaleru, Movva, Challapalli and Ghantasala have been inundated.

Surprisingly cotton and groundnut which are usually cultivated in upland areas with better drain have also been inundated in 90 and 100 hectares respectively.

Mr. Naik said the choking of drains by weed like Tape Grass and water hyacinth caused water-logging and inundation.

The crop is bound to be damaged if the rain continued. With no water being released from Nagarjunasagar Reservoir the farmers in Krishna district were forced to depend on rainfall.

The rain god however was partial to some and neglected some others.

While paddy was planned in 3.49 lakh hectares this kharif transplantation could not been taken up in 11,000 hectares in Koduru, Nagayalanka, Avanigadda and Nandiwada mandals.

This has turned out to be a boon for Koduru and Avanigadda farmers who received rainfall of 120 mm and 131.6 mm over the weekend.

While there seems to be a surplus of water in the Krishna River there is no water for farmers in the tail-end of the canal network.

Downpour in Krishna and Khammam districts has sent several rivulets into spate increasing the inflow to the Prakasam Barrage tail-pond.

The Vijayawada Irrigation Circle authorities, on Wednesday, had to lift 66 Crest Gates of the barrage by one foot and release 47,850 cusecs downstream to maintain the water level at the mandatory 12 feet.

Unfortunately the surplus water is not being released into the canals for the benefit of tail-end farmers because no water should be released into the canals on days the rainfall is high.

The authorities released only 1,450 cusecs in Krishna Eastern Main Canal.

AIKS demands separate budget for agriculture with Rs 1 lakh cr (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=3&ContentId=91752)

Vijayawada:The All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) along with Bharatiya Kheth Mazdoor Sangh (BKMS) are planning to hold a massive protest in New Delhi to press for a separate budget for agriculture sector.
Addressing the media here on Friday, AIKS State president, Ravula Venkaiah said that the farmers from across the country would participate in the protest on November 1, where they would press for a separate agriculture budget with Rs 1 lakh crore on the lines of railways.

He said agriculture was facing severe crisis with more than 2.60 lakh farmers committing suicides in the last 10 years of whom 14,000 were from Andhra Pradesh. He said that the successive governments have turned a blind eye to the agriculture sector leading to the present crisis. The crisis has to be addressed right now to arrest the declining trend and any delay in the effort would push the sector into further crisis.

He recalled the farmers of West Godavari district declaring crop holiday and regretted that this was followed even in Punjab and Haryana States. The farmers were unable to take up cultivation due to skyrocketing input costs and uncertain minimum support price, he said. Venkaiah said that the Central government had introduced Food Security Bill in the country without giving security to the farming community.

He feared that the country would face food crisis if the situation continued like this. He wanted the State and the Central governments to give special care to agriculture sector where more than 60 per cent of the country’s population was living. He regretted that the agriculture sector, which has been the backbone of the country’s economy, was neglected for several years.

Though the farmers and farm labourers have been fighting, the governments remained indifferent towards agriculture sector, he said.
The AIKS leader further said that they would mount pressure on the government to introduce pension scheme for farmers.

He said that the States like Goa, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh were paying pension to farmers and wanted Andhra Pradesh too to follow suit. He also requested the Central government to direct the States to issue pension to farmers and thus protect the farming sector. He said that the AIKS had raised the demand for pension a decade ago and now it had become a reality in other States. He wanted Andhra Pradesh government too to register the farmers and start issuing pension for them.

Venkaiah said that the Andhra Pradesh Rythu Sangham has been holding district level meetings to mobilise farmers for the Delhi protest.
He was confident that the protest would remain a landmark and bring in several changes in the agriculture system and the government’s approach towards agriculture sector, he said.

He further said that the AIKS and the BKMS would lead a delegation of farmers to President Pranab Mukharjee and Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh. The delegation would raise the issues of separate budget for agriculture and pension for farmers, he said and expressed confidence that the government would respond positively.

Krishna district Rythu Sangham president K Nageswara Rao, general secretary M Yalamanda Rao were also present at the news conference.

ITDA PO urges tribal farmers to cultivate nutritious food grains (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=2&ContentId=91780)

Rampachodavaram: Cultivation of nutritious food grains like millets should be taken up in order to achieve high yield with high nutritious values similar to ancient traditional culture, ITDA Rampachodavaram project officer C Naga Rani said on Saturday.
called on the tribal farmers.

She visited Busigudem of Rampachodavaram mandal and DV Kota Guramamidi and Thadepalli villages of Maredumilli mandal and inspected agricultural fields taken up for nutritious food security under the aegis of the Agricultural Department. She inspected the weed crushing machine in Srivari cultivation and observed that Srivari variety, which was sown last year, has given good yields sustaining natural calamities.

Addressing the tribal farmers, she suggested to get high yield with low expenditure by taking up Srivari cultivation and lauded the farmers of Busingudem for taking up Srivari cultivation in 50 acres. She observed that Srivari cultivation was promising in the region as the climate was suitable. She urged the tribal farmers to consume nutritious food by cultivating traditional crops.

She assured the tribal farmers of incentives from the ITDA for the cultivation of millets and urged them to sell the products to the ITDA after their domestic requirement was fulfilled. She said these products would be processed and supplied to the students of tribal residential schools.

The responsibility of operating the processing machine worth Rs 4 lakh would be given to the farming community which is interested in millet cultivation, she said.

Demand for red jowar from Nizamabad in other states (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=5&ContentId=91938)

Nizamabad: The red jowar grain produced in Nizamabad district has great demand in Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Bihar states in India besides Pakisthan and Bangladesh. In Telangana region, red jowar is grown mainly in Nizamabad district, especially in Armoor division. It is cultivated in limited areas in Nirmal mandal in Adilabad and Metpalli mandal in Karimnagar districts. It is mainly used as cattle feed.

Last year, red jowar was cultivated in 55,000 to 60,000 acres in Nizamabad district; and it rose to 70,000 acres to 75,000 acres this year. It was sold at Rs 1,400 to Rs 1,900 per quintal last year and seed suppliers are offering prices ranging from Rs 1,700 to Rs 1,800 in the current year.

Four years ago, the farmers of red jowar staged rasta-rokos and dharnas demanding remunerative price to their produce. But their agitations did not yield any result as politicians and officials ignored their stirs. Police resorted to lathi-charge to disburse the agitating crowds then. Two farmers sustained bullet injuries during police firing.

The dealers who purchased red jowar from the farmers four years ago did not pay the dues to the farmers. An amount of Rs 11 cr was not paid by the dealers (agents) to the farmers. Red jowar farmers invest Rs 8,000 to Rs 10,000 per acre towards input costs and they get about 20 quintals per acre. It takes four months for cultivation.

There are more than 50 companies in the district which purchase red jowar and transport it to other states. Nearly 20 of these companies do not have licence to carry out their trade. The agriculture or marketing officials in the district fail to take action against the erring dealers. They are not keen to verify the authenticity of the agents. Some of the dealers try to cheat poor farmers.

But there are some agents (about 40 per cent of the total agents) who decide the purchase price even at the time of sowing seeds.Irrespective of fluctuations in the price at the time of yield, these dealers pay the farmers the assured price. The proprietors of these companies, Salla Narsareddy and others, urge the farmers to make inquiries about the genuineness of the dealers before selling their produce to them (dealers or agents).

Heavy rain dashes hopes of cotton cultivators (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=3&ContentId=92186)

Nandigama (Krishna): The incessant rains that lashed out the district for the last two weeks have turned out to be a curse on the cotton growers as the crop is damaged and getting discoloured. Though the rains have saved the paddy farmers in the delta, they are set to cause a greater damage to the cotton farmers in the upland areas.
The farmers, who have invested heavily on the crop so far, first for seeds in the black market and later on labour and pest control, are now a worried lot with the devouring crop hit by the pest.

The rains have caused dearly for the farmers due to high pest attack. The rains have caused high growth of the pest posing a greater threat to the crop spread over in 1.3 lakh acres in the western parts of Krishna district. In Nandigama alone, the crop is spread over 50,000 acres with the farmers depending more on the cotton for several years.

As the pest started to attack the crop, the farmers spent several hundreds of rupees to spray pesticides and have already incurred financial losses. Even if they spend more to save the crop, they have two problems ahead – the remunerative price for the harvest in the open market and the possibility of the yield coming down and getting discoloured.

The fear of losing yield heavily causes greater concern for the farmers. According to the farmers, they are likely to lose a minimum of three to four quintals of yield per acre because of the recent rains.

The cotton growers are not getting remunerative price for the last two successive seasons. Though the price had gone up to Rs 10,000 a quintal it did not touch the Rs 5,000 mark in the last season. With only two weeks left for this year to commence cotton season, the farmers are worried about the price in the market. It had now come down to Rs 3,600 a quintal from Rs 4,500 a quintal in the previous season.

Farmers demand adequate supply of groundnut seeds (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=5&ContentId=92150)

Mahbubnagar: Farmers staged a protest in front of the Collectorate here on Monday demanding adequate supply of groundnut seeds.Farmers belonging to Mahubnagar mandal alleged that even though they had been standing in queues for the past five days, the officials concerned were not bothering about their plight and had failed to supply adequate seeds.

They alleged that some officials of the Agricultural Department had colluded with the seed supply distributors and were allowing them to create an artificial scarcity in the market. Later, Vijay Kumar, Joint Director of Agricultural Department, came to the agitating point and urged them to give up their protest promising that steps would be taken to supply adequate seeds to farmers in a couple of days. With his promise, they relented.

Earlier, farmers also staged a rasta roko at the office of Agricultural Department in One Town. Raising slogans against the apathy of officials, they blocked the road. After learning about the incident, police rushed to the spot and dispersed the crowd.

Incessant rains damage cotton crop in Khammam district (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=5&ContentId=92151)

Khammam: Cotton farmers are now worried about the deteriorating condition of their crop as the recent torrential rains damaged the cotton crop extensively.According to officials, cotton was raised over 1.70 lakh acres of land in Khammam district. When the crop was at flowering stage, farmers felt that they would reap a bumper harvest this year. However, the recent torrential rains that lashed the entire district watered down their hopes and pushed them into dire straits.

In fact, the district has not received good rains since the monsoon season commenced and farmers in many places have not started their Kharif season. Moreover, with water in the Nagarjuna Sagar project touching the dead storage levels, the State Government has not released water to the irrigation canals. Under the Left Bank Canal of NSP, thousands of acres of land are cultivated every year in Khammam district.

Due to scanty rainfall and delay in releasing water to the irrigation canals, farmers in large numbers, including those who cultivate traditional crops like paddy, also raised cotton crop this year. When the crop was at harvesting stage, the torrential rains lashed the entire district damaging the standing crop in thousands of acres.
The Rythu Sangham leaders said the rains damaged the cotton crop over 50,000 acres of land in the district and demanded the Government to announce a compensation package to farmers immediately. Meanwhile, the district administration said the official concerned had started visiting the fields to assess the damage of crops and the preliminary report would be sent to the Government soon after the completion of the ongoing exercise.

On the other hand, virus and pests are attacking the cotton crops. Officials asked the cotton growers to use recommended pesticides and fertilizers to avoid pest attack.

Sugar-cane farmers suffer due to lack of support price (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=5&ContentId=92154)

Mahbubnagar: The sugar-cane growers in the district were facing untold hardships as they were not getting minimum support price for their produce. With the establishment of Krishnaveni Sugars factory at Apparala of Kottakota mandal in the district, many farmers started showing interest in the cultivation of sugar-cane.

However, within two years of the establishment of the sugar factory, farmers failed to get remunerative price for their produce. They were bemoaning the fact that the hard labour that they had put in did not yield good results.

Farmers were growing sugar-cane crop in 10,000 acres covering the mandals of Kottakota, Wanaparthy, Gadwal, Alampur, Kalwakurthy, Nagarkurnool and Shadnagar constituencies. Although the climate is favourable for the cultivation of sugar-cane, the farmers were not getting encouragement or support from the owners of the factory.
The factory has the crushing capacity of 3,000 tonnes of sugar-cane per day.

Although 6 lakh tonnes of sugar-cane were required this year, only two lakhs tonnes were available. Farmers said that though the government promised that it would provide subsidies for the sugar crop, it failed to keep its promise. Farmers who were transporting sugar-cane from far off places were unable to make any profits as the entire amount had to be spent for transporting the crop.

Although the minimum support price for farmers in other parts of the state for sugarcane crop ranged between Rs 2,600 and Rs 3,000, in Mahbubnagar it was only Rs 2,000. Farmers were demanding that at the time of harvest, the Company should bear the costs of transport and labour. They also demanded the factory to pay them 40 per cent of the amount in advance.

Speaking to the media, the Sugar-cane Crop Cultivation Development Council president Chandrasekhar Reddy and farmer Srinivas said that they had explained the hardships faced by farmers in full detail. They said that the area of cultivation of the crop would grow only if the farmers get minimum support price.

They said it was unfortunate that they had to face such problems at a time when sugar-cane cultivation was on the rise in the district.

Officials told to prepare plans for paddy procurement (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=5&ContentId=92155)

Sangareddy: District Collector A Dinakar Babu has directed the officials of Civil Supplies Department to prepare plans for procurement of paddy from farmers.The Collector was addressing a meeting of Civil Supplies Officials in Sangareddy on Monday. Paddy yield of 3.62 lakh tonnes is estimated in Medak district and of this quantity, 62,000 tonnes would be allocated for farmers’ use.

The officials have to make arrangements for procurement of about 3 lakh tonnes paddy. Of this quantity, 2.43 lakh tonnes would be procured through rice millers, 12,000 tonnes through Food Corporation of India (FCI) and 45,000 tonnes through Civil Supplies Department.

The Collector has said that 87 paddy purchasing centres were arranged in the district – 54 run by Indira Kranthi Patham (IKP) members, 27 by Primary Agriculture Cooperative Societies (PACS), 2 by Civil Supplies Department and 4 by FCI.

A support price of Rs 1,280 per quintal would be paid for A-grade paddy, Rs 1,250 for B grade. He urged the farmers to maintain quality while selling paddy stocks. The officials have to bring awareness among farmers with regard to quality of paddy. The procured paddy would be transported to millers and two transport contractors were deployed for the purpose.

In-charge Joint Collector BNVVN Murthy, Medak Sub-Collector Bharathi Holikeri, RDOs of Siddipet, Ramachandrapuram and other officials were present at the meeting.

Aid sought to kin in farmers’ suicide cases (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=5&ContentId=92161)

Adilabad: The members of `Raithu Atmahatyala Nivarana Samithi’ urged the District Collector to provide financial assistance to the relatives of the farmers who committed suicides in the district.

Several leaders of political parties submitted a memorandum at the Grievance Cell in the Collectorate urging the Collector to implement G.O. No. 421, which provides succor to the kin of the farmers who committed suicide. As per the G.O., each family would be given a financial assistance of Rs 1.50 lakh and a job to one member of the family.

The members regretted that the order was not implemented in the district last year and in the current year and sought immediate implementation of the G.O. Nainala Govardhan and others were present when they submitted the memorandum.

Interest subsidy to crop loans : Naidu seeks Pawar’s clarification (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=1&subCategory=2&ContentId=92121)

Hyderabad : TDP President N Chandrababu Naidu on Monday demanded Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar to clarify if the Centre had taken a decision to give subvention of interest on long-term crop loans taken by farmers on the re-scheduled loans whenever the mandals are declared as drought affected.

In a letter to the Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar, Naidu said that there were reports that the Central government had announced to provide another 3 per cent interest subsidy against the subsidy of seven per cent interest on crop loans to the farmers who repay the loans on time.

He urged the union minister to communicate this to the Reserve Bank of India if it was true. He said despite sufferings by farmers caused by deficit rainfall, insufficient water besides the problems of seeds, fertilisers and increased prices of diesel, the drought relief has not yet been provided .

According to official figures, as against 1128 mandals, deficit rainfall was recorded in 380 mandals ranging from 20 to 50 per cent while in 15 mandals, the deficit was beyond 60 per cent of the normal rainfall.

Urging the minister to instruct the state government to send proposals and declare the drought-affected mandals so that immediate relief will be extended to the affected, he requested Pawar to support farmers by allotting sufficient quantities of different fertilisers as needed.

Ryots want Civil Supplies to procure paddy in Krishna (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=3&ContentId=92444)

Vijayawada: The Telugu Rythu Krishna District Chief, Chalasani Anjaneyulu, here on Tuesday requested the Chief Minister N Kirankumar Reddy to intervene and direct the State Civil Supplies Department to procure paddy in the district.

Anjaneyulu met the Chief Minister at Gannavaram airport and submitted a representation. He welcomed the Chief Minister’s decision to make the Civil Supplies Department to procure paddy directly from farmers in seven districts.

However, he regretted that the government did not include Krishna district in the procurement plan. Stating that the farmers in Krishna district cultivate 20 lakh metric tons of paddy in 4.50 lakh hectares and wondered how the officials have failed to include the district in the Civil Supplies Department’s procurement exercise. He requested the Chief Minister to direct the Civil Supplies Department to include Krishna district in the procurement plan.

He also asked the Chief Minister to release another 15,000 cusecs of water for the Krishna delta and save the standing crop.

Govt will help rain-hit farmers, says Vatti (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=3&ContentId=92453)

Bhimadole (West Godavari): Minister for Tourism Vatti Vasanta Kumar on Tuesday said the state government would come to the rescue of farmers who suffered crop loss in the torrential rains in September and October. The downpour inundated crops in 57,000 acres.

A survey would be conducted to identify farmers who suffered losses, he said.The Minister was responding to representations submitted to him by several farmers at MM Puram of Bhimadole mandal.

The farmers appealed to Vatti to help them tide over the crisis created by heavy rains. They said crops were inundated due to heavy rains in villages near Kolleru.

The Minister said primary estimates suggest that crop was inundated in 31 mandals. Farmers in some places were relaxed as flood water receded. But at many places, the rain water stagnated in the fields.
Mandal-level teams of officials were deputed to assess the loss.

The teams would enlist the losses after enumeration. The farmers who suffered losses should inform the teams to record the loss. Basing on the reports of the teams, the government would take measures to provide help to the affected farmers, he said.

Vatti promised that the farmers would get compensation for every cent of land submerged in rain water. He directed the enumeration teams to present report with details of crop loss at the earliest to enable the government initiate relief measures.

Sharing the primary information, the Minister said while the rains during September-end caused loss to crop in 37,000 acres, the downpour in October affected crop in 20,000 acres. The primary estimates put the crop loss at Rs 25 crore to Rs 30 crore. The government would help every farmer who lost crop because of rains.

Victim of harassment

The Minister directed Bhimadole Circle Inspector Bhasker to take stern action against the accused in harassment case of Dwaraka Tirumala Venkateswara Swamy temple woman employee. The arrested persons in the case were released on bail and continue to threaten the woman employee.

The police should take severe action against persons harassing women in the society, he said.

Vatti promised release of funds for repair of roads badly damaged in recent rains when people submitted memorandum to him detailing bad condition of roads in several villages.

Whirlwind tour

Nidamarru: Tourism Minister Vatti Vasanta Kumar made a whirlwind tour of low-lying villages inundated in recent rains on Tuesday. He visited Tokalapalli, Bainepalli, Aamudalapalli and Chinanindrakolanu villages in Nidamarru mandal. Women urged the minister to sanction houses at Aamudalapalli.

He promised that every poor family would be extended housing benefit. He also said the poor would get houses in phases in the mandal.

Cane growers seek Rs 3,500 MSP (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=3&ContentId=92460)

Vijayawada: The Andhra Pradesh Federation of Sugarcane Growers Associations here on Tuesday asked the Central Government to increase Minimum Support Price (MSP) of sugar cane to Rs 3,500 a ton. The farmers at the meeting unanimously resolved requesting the government to increase the MSP as the cost of cultivation had increased several times in the last one year causing burden on the growers.

The Federation General Secretary, Nanduri Satya Venkateswar Sharma, briefing the media persons after the meeting, said that the farmers were spending around Rs 1.30 lakh per acre and the cost had further gone up due to increase in the diesel prices. The yield was not increasing beyond 30 tons per acre.

He said that the farmers have expressed displeasure over the present MSP of Rs 1700 a tone and demanded that the government increase it to Rs 3,500 a ton from this season.
Sharma said that the sugar factories have not made the payments to the farmers for the 2011-12 crushing season and wanted the government’s intervention to clear the arrears. He requested the State and the Central Governments to intervene and direct the sugar industries to make payments at the earliest.

He further said that States like Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana and Maharashtra were declaring advisory price and were making the sugar industries to pay that price. However, he regretted that Andhra Pradesh Government had stopped announcing the advisory price and demanded that the advisory price be restored to a minimum of Rs 1000 per ton and asked the government to make a statement at the earliest.

Sharma requested the State and the Central Governments to support the sugar cane growers in adopting modern technology and shifting to mechanisation. He wanted the government to open mechanisation units attached to every sugar industry. He also requested the government to direct the industries to pay the cutting and transportation charges to the farmers to give some relief to the overburdened farming community.

The meeting unanimously resolved requesting the State Government to call for a tripartite meeting with the sugarcane growers, factory representatives and the government officials to resolve several issues concerning the farmers and the sugar industry. He also demanded that the factories pay 50 per cent of the revenue from the sugarcane by-products to the farmers.

Kharif paddy farmers warned of pest attack (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=2&ContentId=92463)

Srikakulam: Agriculture joint director S Muralikrishna directed the Kharif farmers to save the paddy sown during this season from ‘Sudidoma’, a paddy pest. The pest was noticed in the Kharif crop in the district, he said. It was noticed on Sambamasuri, Swarna and Sona Masuri kinds of paddy, he added.

The effect of the pest can be seen in Polaki, Narsannapet, Amudalavalasa, Ponduru, Julumuru, LNpet, Sarubujjili mandals, he said. He urged the farmers to take immediate steps to curb the pest. The grey coloured pest can be noticed on the stem above the water level. The insects are usually in groups and suck the juice from the plant. The plant then becomes yellow and dries up. In extreme cases, the plant dries up as if it is burnt, he said.

Rs 75 lakh Rabi crop loans for Girijan farmers (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=2&ContentId=92464)

Parvathipuram: It has been decided to extend Rs 75 crore towards crop loans to the Girijan farmers in the Agency area for this Rabi, ITDA project officer BR Ambedkar said. The loans will be distributed to the Girijan farmers through the Parvathipuram, Saluru and GL Puram societies from Novemeber 1, he said.

Agriculture officials have been directed to prepare lists of the Girijan farmers who will need the loans and for which crop, by October 16. At a meeting of the Agriculture, GCC and Girijan Welfare officials, in the ITDA office on Tuesday, the PO said that this decision has been taken as part of the business development plan of the GCC.

There should be no doubts about the recovery of loans by the GCC, he said. The society managers of Saluru, Parvathipuram and GLpuram have agreed to lend Rs 35 lakh, Rs 20 lakh and Rs 20 lakh, respectively. The PO ordered Agriculture officer Anasuya to coordinate the loan distribution. The PO directed the assistant Girijan Welfare officers to submit indents for the necessary essential goods for Girijan Welfare hostels for the months of December and January by November 15. GCC DM Jogeswar Rao participated.

Minister demands good support price for sugarcane farmers (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=5&ContentId=92422)

Sangareddy: Minister for Heavy Industries and Sugar J Geetha Reddy advised the managements of the sugar factories to provide good remunerative price for the cane farmers.

In a release, she said that the input cost increased many fold and farmers were facing many hardships for investing the money on the crops.

“If proper remunerative price is denied, famers will face lot of problems and nobody will come forward to raise the next crop in the district. So that, understanding the plight of farmers, the managements of sugar factories should maintain generous attitude towards them and provide good remunerative price for their produce,” Geetha Reddy said.
She said at present, the Sugar rate per quintal was at Rs 3,500 in the market. The remunerative price should be provided to farmers based on the ground realities and the current market prices.

Wonder results of water harvest (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=1&subCategory=2&ContentId=92582)

S 3 acres can recharge ground water in a sq km S City project impresses CoP delegates

Hyderabad: Water harvesting in just three acres would recharge ground water for an area spreading over one square kilometer. A water harvesting project taken up by Mathen Mathew in Malkajgiri in Hyderabad proved it. The project details were explained by Mathen in the side event session on minor irrigation and its benefits conducted by A P Biodiversity Board on Wednesday in Convention of Boidiversity.

According to Mathen, his team took up three acre government land and built water harvesting pool. The water in rainy season was tapped and diverted in to the land. The results are surprising. The ground water, which used to be available only till December, is now available till April. The people in one square kilometer area got the ground water for more than four months because of the experiment, said Mathen. A total of 11,679 people in the one square kilometer area were benefited with the ground water.

Explaining his project results, he said that the people of Hyderabad need not worry of getting ground water if such projects were taken up in other areas. “If we implemented more such projects in the city, we can get ground water throughout the year”, he said, adding that the government is spending huge money to bring the water from Krishna and Godavari rivers. “Though getting water from Krishna and Godavari to cater to the needs of Hyderabad, we can reduce the stress on it with these water harvesting projects”, he said.

Mathen is an expert committee member of A P Biodiversity Board. Stressing the need of developing minor irrigation sources, A P Biodiversity Board chairman Dr Hampaiah said that major irrigation projects have been facing silting problem and it would have been better if the government opted for taking up developing minor irrigation sources in the state.

“Srisailam irrigation project has been facing silting problem and the water storage capacity of the dam came down by 30 percent and it would be gone by another 30 percent in the near future”, he said and added that extending water to the agriculture through major irrigation projects would cost about Rs 1 lakh per acre.

He said that the de-silting is not cost effective and developing minor irrigation sources is the best way for all reasons. He said that the biodiversity would be protected well with these minor irrigation sources. Dr Tirupathaiah, Director General Walamtari and watershed development special commissioner Suvarna said that minor irrigation sources are very much related in developing the biodiversity in the state.

Suvarna said that flora and fauna witnessed increasing at the places where watershed programs are implemented. Pragathi Knowledge Park chairman G V K Rao said that a tree would protect hundreds of human beings and he explained how the Indians given importance of greenery in their life.

Boost to Sree variety paddy cultivation (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=3&ContentId=92625)

Eluru: West Godavari District Additional Joint Collector Miriyala Venkata Seshagiri Babu directed officials of Agriculture Department to encourage farmers cultivate Sree variety of paddy to get high income. He reviewed Sree variety paddy cultivation and rodent eradication at Rytu Bhavan here on Wednesday.

He said the Sree paddy cultivation would give more yield with less investment. Sowing would require just 12 to 15 kg seed and harvest would be advanced by a fortnight. Sowing with drum seeder would enable the farmer get Rs 57,000 income per hectare while the investment was Rs 27,500 per hectare.

He asked the officials to encourage farmers go for modern farming machinery to overcome shortage of labourers.
He also directed them to suggest methods of rodent eradication to farmers.

Tuna season spurs fishermen (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=2&ContentId=92666)

Srikakulam: Fishermen of the district are joyous as they could catch tonnes of tuna fish that is in great demand. As this is the season for tuna fish, the fishermen, who were a miserable lot until recently, went to sea enthusiastically. Fishermen from Hukumpeta and Manchineelapet villages of Vajrapukothur mandal said that they could catch two-and-half tonnes of tuna fish in one day.

This fish is exported to Kerala through middlemen. Tuna fish costs Rs 250 a kg in Vizag and Kerala markets. But the middlemen are cheating the fishermen here by paying only Rs 25 per kg, the fishermen deplored. As there are no cold storage facilities, they have to sell the fish at the rate decided by the middlemen, they said. At least now the government should come forward and set up cold storages, they urged.

Andhra Pradesh forecasts paddy output of 107 lakh tonnes (http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/agri-biz/article3991251.ece)

HYDERABAD, OCTOBER 12:
As the kharif season closes in Andhra Pradesh, the State Government has forecast paddy production of 107 lakh tonnes.

Of this, the public agencies would procure 13.71 lakh tonnes. The State would set up 1,170 procurement centres.

These centres would procure paddy at Rs 1,250 a quintal for the general variety and Rs 1,280 for the grade A variety.

For superfine varieties, the State has announced a special price of Rs 1,500.

Farmers find organic cultivation profitable (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=2&ContentId=92926)

Kakinada: Some farmers in East Godavari district have been using organic manure and cultivating vegetables on the stretch of land adjacent to the Godavari canal between Penukuduru in Karapa mandal and Gorripudi for the past few years.

They are using the soil retrieved from the canal and organic manure every year to cultivate vegetables like brinjal, lady's finger, leafy vegetables and pumpkin.

They are reportedly selling their produce on the canal bund. People who are passing by the canal road from Kakinada and Draksharamam are buying the vegetables as they are fresh and very healthy to consume.
The vegetables were being sold for Rs 10 for a heap. Cultivation of vegetables here has a reason, as Gorripudi in Karapa mandal was famous for guava orchards, but they were destroyed due to pests.

Farmers used to cultivate guava in 3,000 acres since decades, but now there was not even a single acre of plantation. So, the farmers started cultivating vegetables in the guava plantations.

Meanwhile the poor farmers are using the canal bank to grow vegetables to fend for themselves. The farmers are using organic manure to cultivate vegetables as they have livestock.
Ramu, a farmer, said that he was earning Rs 200 per day after the expenses. He further stated that the vegetable farming has become an alternative to paddy and other crops.

Cotton farmers fear less yield (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=5&ContentId=92862)

Nalgonda: Thousands of farmers growing cotton in Nalgonda district express their fears of less crop production during the present Kharif season. Scanty rainfall and various types of crop diseases are the reasons for their apprehension.

Normal cultivation area of cotton in the district is 1,55,127 hectares. Last year, they cultivated cotton in 2,05,359 hectares. As the officials repeatedly advised the farmers not to go for paddy, more number of farmers cultivated cotton. And thus the cultivation area of cotton is increased to 2,10,984 hectares in the current Kharif season.

Instead of using conventional seeds, the farmers used BT Hybrid seeds with the aim of getting better yield. The agriculture officials suggested to them that the input costs would be less if they use BT seeds instead of normal cotton seeds.

However, there were no adequate rains in the first two months of the season. Several insects – moths, bacteria, pests, worms and other varieties of harmful insects – attacked the crop during the crucial flowering stage. Due to the attacks and due to scanty rainfall, the standing crops developed diseases.

Under the circumstances, cotton farmers fear less crop yield for the current season. The Agriculture officials estimated a total yield of 94,500 metric tonnes of cotton for the Kharif season. However, due to the spread of diseases, the yield may be reduced by 20,000 tonnes, they said. The total loss to the cotton farmers would be around Rs 70 cr. The BT seeds have failed to save farmers this time.

The State Government earlier declared Rs 3,500 per quintal as support price for cotton. The Government, for the current Kharif season, has increased the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for cotton from Rs 3,600 to Rs 3,900 for first quality of cotton.

Collector lauds bankers for giving ` 2,133 cr crop loans (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=3&ContentId=93082)

Eluru: District Collector Dr G Vani Mohan lauded efforts of bankers in sanctioning crop loans worth Rs 2, 313 crore to farmers for the Kharif season in the district. She was speaking at Bankers’ District Consultative Committee (DCC) meeting at Collectorate here on Friday.

The Collector said that the bankers played a vital role in providing credit to the needy farmers in time for the season and would be ready to provide some more loans worth Rs 560 crore to the farmers for the coming Rabi season.

Around 1.10 lakh tenant farmers were issued loan eligibility cards this year and a total of 40,509 tenant farmers were given loans worth Rs 150 crore, she added. She appealed to the bankers to extend their cooperation to further sanction loans worth Rs 150 crore to the tenant farmers during the current fiscal year.

She stated that loan recovery committees were set up in all mandals of the district for speedy recovery of loans from the farmers. “We have set a target of Rs 596.86 crore to be provided as loans to 21,603 Self Help Groups (SHGs) in the district and we have already given loans worth Rs 234.85 crore to 7131 SHGs,’’ the Collector informed in the meeting.

Speaking on the occasion, Assistant General Manager of the Reserve Bank of India ASV Kameswara Rao thanked the district administration for appointing recovery committees in every mandal to facilitate easy recovery of loans from farmers. The bankers would extend full cooperation to the government in implementing several welfare schemes, he added.

Additional Joint Collector MV Seshagiri Babu, Officials from different banks and others were present on the occasion.

Rice millers told to adhere to genuine measures (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=5&subCategory=4&ContentId=93104)

Proddutur: Assistant Commissioner of Weights and Measures Department of Kurnool district, Prakash Rao ordered rice millers and wholesale traders to sell rice bags with authentic measurements. He participated in an awareness programme on weights and measurements with rice millers and wholesale traders at Mandi Complex in Proddutur on Friday.

Addressing the participants, he said that from now onwards, rice bags should be sold with 25 or 50 kilograms. He warned of taking stringent action against the traders if he receives complaints regarding reducing quantity of rice in bags.

“If anybody caught for the first time, they will be levied a penalty of Rs 10,000, if the same person commits the same mistake for twice, he has to face a penalty of Rs 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh and imprisonment. He said that officials of the department will tour in the district soon to create awareness among the millers and traders.

District Weights and Measures department officer Subba Reddy, District Rice Millers Union president Malla Reddy, traders and millers participated in the meeting.

AP to probe sucking pest attack on Bt cotton (http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/agri-biz/ap-to-probe-sucking-pest-attack-on-bt-cotton/article3996919.ece?homepage=true&ref=wl_home)

HYDERABAD, OCT. 14:
The Andhra Pradesh Government will probe the reported attack of sucking pests on Bt cotton in some parts of the State.

The Agriculture Minister Kanna Lakshminarayana has directed the officials to initiate a probe by the scientists of Acharya N.G. Ranga Agriculture University (ANGRAU) on the reported damage of Bt cotton crop due to the nagging sucking pests.

Reviewing the arrangements for the upcoming rabi season here on Friday evening, he said about 2.75 lakh quintals of groundnut seed would be distributed for the season.

The Agriculture Minister will hold a meeting with the Major Irrigation Minister P. Sudarshan Reddy on October 26 on the issue of releasing water for the standing kharif crops in the K C Canal and Krishna Delta areas. The farmers in these areas are demanding immediate release of water to rescue the crop in the absence of rains.

The Government would hold a 13-day campaign through out the State to popularise the Centrally-sponsored schemes and mechanisation in agriculture.

At the review meeting, the Minister had expressed his unhappiness over the poor mechanisation and on the slow progress in implementation of certain Central schemes.

Farmers demand closure of NACL (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=1&subCategory=2&ContentId=93234)

Srikakulam: Tension prevailed at the Collectorate when the farmers, who are agitating for the closure of Nagarjuna Agrichem, threatened to commit suicide by climbing an electric pole. It may be recalled that the protesters were agitating for the closure of Nagarjuna Agrichem after a reactor blast occurred in the factory.

The farmers vented their ire at the officials of the Pollution Control Board when they reportedly granted permission yet again for the revival of the factory, which was closed temporarily after the reactor blast.

How can the officials grant permission when they are demanding opinion poll, they questioned. They demanded the intervention of officials concerned and take measures to stop the reopening of the factory.

To exert pressure on the officials, six youth among the protesters climbed the electric pole and warned of ending their lives. Similarly, they staged a rasta roko by squatting in front of the Collectorate. The agitators struck to their guns, and said that they won't leave the Collectorate until the Collector gives an assurance in this connection.

AP to pay interest on farm loans directly to banks (http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/ap-to-pay-interestfarm-loans-directly-to-banks/490146/)

The banks have targeted to lend Rs 52,972 cr to the agriculture sector, both crop and term loans, in the current year

Chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy on Friday said interest on farm loans would will be directly credited to banks by the state government with effect from the current kharif season.

The government last year had announced total interest subvention on loans to farmers who repay on time. While the government reimbursed the interest paid by farmers last year, it would be directly credited to the banks on behalf of the farmers from this year onwards, according to the chief minister.

The banks have targeted to lend Rs 52,972 crore to the agriculture sector, both crop and term loans, in the current year, according to the annual credit plan prepared by the state-level bankers' committee (SLBC).
Addressing the SLBC meeting, Reddy asked the bankers to step up lending to allied activities as they provided supplementary income to the farmers.

Total advances and deposits during the fist quarter in the state posted an incremental increase of 5.07 per cent and 5.23 per cent respectively while the incremental credit deposit ratio stood at 118 per cent during the quarter.

Andhra Bank chairman and managing director BA Prabhakar, who is president of the SLBC, said the near double CD ratio as compared with the minimum prescribed 60 per cent in the state called for a higher emphasis on resource mobilisation, especially in untapped rural, simi-urban areas.

Solar power policy soon
Finance minister Anam Ramanarayana Reddy urged the bankers at the meeting to finance solar power projects in the state. Bankers have been reluctant to fund solar projects owing to lack of clarity in government policies. The finance minister said the government would soon come out with a clear policy framework to promote solar energy in a big way.

Cyclone Nilam damaged standing crops on 76,980 hectares, says govt (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Cyclone-Nilam-damaged-standing-crops-on-76980-hectares-says-govt/articleshow/17071520.cms)

HYDERABAD: Besides four deaths, crops in an extent of 76,980 hectares have been damaged in the state due to cyclone Nilam. After holding a review meeting with officials and collectors of the affected districts, revenue minister N Raghuveera Reddy told the media here on Friday that this was the extent of crop damage as per preliminary estimates and that it would be revised after the district administrations reaches at correct figure.

Due to the impact of cyclone Nilam, one death each had been reported from Anantapur , Prakasam, East Godavari and Nellore districts . In all, Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam , Khammam and Warangal districts were lashed by very heavy rains triggered by cyclone Nilam. As many as 4,824 people have been shifted to 13 relief camps set up across Prakasam district. As far as structural damages were concerned, Raghuveers Reddy said at least 35 houses in the coastal areas were damaged due to the heavy rains. Of them, 16 were permanently damaged. Around 445 electric poles got uprooted due to gales caused by Nilam.

"At least eight tanks have either breached or damaged due to heavy rains and inflows. Crops spread across 76,980 hectares got inundated ," he said. However, the minister said the actual damage could be assessed only after the water receded in the affected areas. Stating that the relief measures were in full swing, the revenue minister said there was no shortage of funds for the relief works. He added that chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy was monitoring the overall situation.

Micro irrigation practices gaining popularity in Vizag district (http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Visakhapatnam/micro-irrigation-practices-gaining-popularity-in-vizag-district/article4043249.ece)

About 450 hectares of land belonging to small and marginal farmers in the district have so far been brought under micro irrigation practices by the Andhra Pradesh Micro Irrigation Corporation (APMIC). In the next 3 months another 600 hectares will be covered bringing the total extent of land brought under micro-irrigation to 1050 hectares. Oil palm, sugar cane and vegetable crops were being raised by the small and marginal farmers using drip irrigation systems. Another additional 500 hectares will be targeted in the months of February and March and the mango, coconut, guava and even sericulture plantation farmers will be encouraged to adopt drip irrigation techniques. The total extent of lands that will come under drip irrigation by the end of March will be 1500 hectares. The state government is introducing drip irrigation with the objective of conserving scarce water resources and encouraging its judicious use. Besides there is a false notion among the farmers that the more they water the plant the more it would increase its crop yield. This impression the APMIC is seeking to dispel by educating the farmers against excessive use of water.

Farmers investing a maximum of Rs.1 lakh are able to reap 100 per cent profits due to their adoption of the micro-irrigation techniques. While SC and ST farmers were getting free supply of the drip irrigation kits, small and marginal farmers were given 90 per cent subsidy with a mere 10 per cent of the cost as the beneficiary’s contribution. Medium farmers are eligible for 75 per cent subsidy and farmers irrespective of their land holdings are eligible for 40 per cent subsidy.

All that a farmer needs is a small piece of land anywhere from 2 to 5 acres and a bore-well and the rest is being provided by the government and banks. Small and marginal farmers are reaping profits out of vegetable cultivation which is giving them revenue on a daily and weekly basis. District Collector V. Seshadri had directed the department of Horticulture and the APMIC to educate the farmers and create awareness on the benefits of drip irrigation and bring 1000 acres under the drip, under Indira Jala Prabha scheme. The scheme envisages conversion of waste lands into fruitful ventures taking advantage of the drip. The NREG scheme also came in handy for the farmers. The APMIC plantations were being raised using the labor component under the scheme.

The farmers are using the NREGS work force for the tilling, plantation and all farm operations and for installation of the drip irrigation systems. Using drip irrigation, several farmers had been cultivating leafy vegetables and tomatoes and earning Rs.50,000 per acre annually. Scores of farmers were earning handsomely on their lands using 100 per cent subsidy on drip.

Andhra Pradesh Micro Irrigation Project (APMIP) project director S. Rammohan Rao told The Hindu that the drip and sprinkler irrigation is helping the small and marginal farmers in the district to earn handsomely.

Chief minister promises compensation to ryots (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Chief-minister-promises-compensation-to-ryots/articleshow/17121534.cms)

VIJAYAWADA: Promising to come to the aid of rain-hit farmers in the state, chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy said that the government will take all steps to disburse crop compensation to tenant farmers. He said that a separate enumeration will be done to identity the tenant farmers so that they can be given the compensation amount in place of the original land owners.

Speaking to reporters at Gannavaram airport on Tuesday before rushing to Khammam and Godavari districts, the chief minister said that the tenant farmer was the biggest loser due to the heavy rain and floods in about 10 districts.

"Although, there are certain hurdles in handing over the crop compensation directly to the tenant farmer, we are hopeful of overcoming them by conducting a separate listing. We will be giving priority to the tenant farmer than the landlord as the lease holder is the one who has lost the entire crop," the chief minister.

Kiran Kumar Reddy said the administration in all the districts had done everything possible to prevent loss but certain things were beyond their control. "It is a fact that the loss was very heavy as the rain battered the state in an unexpected way," he said.

He added that he would review the situation with senior officials after the loss enumeration is completed and take a decision to alleviate the farming community. The chief minister said he had already directed the officials to take proper care during the enumeration of losses and disbursement for compensation. He also promised to provide permanent solution for the frequent inundation of Vijayawada city. to the Budameru trouble to free Vijayawada city from frequent inundation.

He said that the government was prepared to spend any amount for this and added that a decision on allocation of funds for upgrading Budameru would be taken very shortly. Revenue minister N Raghuveera Reddy, agriculture minister Kanna Lakshminarayana and several other ministers were present.

Before leaving for the aerial survey of Godavari and Khammam districts, the chief minister reviewed the situation with the officials and MLAs at Gannavaram airport. He directed the officials to complete the enumeration soon so that they could submit a detailed loss report to the centre. He told the legislators that he would be talking to the Centre to request the Cotton Corporation of India to purchase the damaged cotton and to the Food Corporation of India (FCI) to buy discolored paddy from the farmers. He asked the district collectors to interact with the scientists from university of agriculture and take their feedback to protect the crops that survived from the rains. He asked the irrigation officials to take steps to prevent losses during such calamities by preparing perfect 'fire-fighting' measures. District collector Budhaprakash M Jyothi explained about the damage that affected the district. TDP MLA Devineni Umamaheswara Rao said that there was no solution for floods inundating the city as long as modernization of Budameru was pending. The CM asked the engineer-in-chief to personally monitor the works.

MLAs Dasari Balavardhan Rao, Malladi Vishnu, Vellamapalli Srinivas urged the CM to grant funds for modernization of all the drains in the city. Ministers Kanna Lakshminarayana, Sudershan Reddy, Raghuveera Reddy, Botsa Satyanarayana, Pithani Satyanarayana were present at the review.

eFresh to train AP farmers in mango productivity (http://www.business-standard.com/india/news/efresh-to-train-ap-farmers-in-mango-productivity/493831/)

The initiative is part of Coca-Cola and Jain irrigation's Project Unnati

Hyderabad-based eFresh, a multi-lingual portal serving all the stakeholders in the food chain starting from the farmer, has been mandated by Jain Irrigation Systems Limited and Coca-Cola India to train and empower farmers in Andhra Pradesh for increasing mango productivity, quality and safety of the produce and for sustainability.

The initiative is part of Coca-Cola and Jain irrigation’s Project Unnati, a partnership with farmers to demonstrate and enable adoption of ultra-high density plantation, a farming practice that leads to mango orchards attaining their full potential in 3-4 years and also allows nearly 600 trees to be planted in an acre instead of the conventional method of planting 40 trees in an acre.

“Training will be conducted in the villages of Andhra Pradesh by using a mobile bus, which has the facility to accommodate about 20 farmers. The bus is equipped with all tools for dissemination of knowledge to the farmers,” Srihari, managing director of eFresh, said in a press release on Tuesday.
The Phase-I of the programme with ultra-density mango farming has commenced in Chittoor district, which is known for its production of Totapuri mango variety, a key ingredient in the country’s largest selling mango drink ‘Maaza’.

“The programme will be extended to districts like Kadapa and other parts of Andhra Pradesh, on a need basis. An average of 700 farmers will be benefited under this training programme every month,” Srihari said.

Andhra Pradesh CM reviews R'seema irrigation projects worth Rs.28,000 crs (http://indiaeducationdiary.in/Shownews.asp?newsid=17318)

Report Ranjan k Parida, Hyderabad: The Chief Minister Mr N Kiran Kumar Reddy today asked the officials to speed up all the ongoing irrigation projects in Rayalaseema area after resolving the pending issues and bottlenecks. He asked them to chalk out a plan of action on how to complete these projects at the earliest and provide water to farmers within the shortest possible time.

The Chief Minister reviewed in detail all the ongoing irrigation projects of Rayalaseema costing Rs.28,000/-crs. The Chief Minister also asked the officials to send proposals for appointment of liaison officer at Delhi to speedy persuasion of matters with Ministry of Forests & Environment and other ministries. The Chief Minister directed them to speed up the R & R package and see that every displaced person be rehabilitated properly. Chief Secretary Smt.Minnie Mathew, Principal Secretary, Irrigation (Rayalaseema Projects), Aravinda Reddy, Engineer-in-Chief, Irrigation, Muralidhar, Commissioner, PCCF Mishra, top officials from Railways, AP Transco, National Highways, Chief Enigineers and other officials attended the meeting.

The Chief Minister asked the Principal Secretary and Engineer-in-Chief to list out the pending issues and bottlenecks and let him know the problems if any to be taken up with the Government of India. He said he will take up with the GoI such issues at his level or at the Chief Secretary's level. He also directed the officials to sort out immediately all pending issues and bottlenecks that could be solved at their level. He asked the R&R Commissioner to immediately disburse the pending R&R packages, particularly to the villagers who lost their houses and given alternate land already.

The Chief Minister also asked them to sort out all the pending legal issues taking it up with the Advocate General and also asked the PCCF to clear the forest lands by taking up the issues with the Government of India on a priority issues. The Chief Minister also asked the AP Transco to expedite construction of power stations wherever required. He wanted irrigation water to be provided to the farmers who are to be benefitted by the projects and there should not be any more delay due to small bottlenecks since majority works of the projects are completed.

The Chief Minister reviewed Projects like Mylavaram modernisation, Guru Raghavendra Lift Irrigation System, Gundlakamma Reservoir, Penna Ahobilam Balancing Reservoir (PABR)-Stage II, Galeru Nagari Sujala Sravanthi (GNSS) Phase-I, Gandikota-CBR Lift schemes, Siddapuram Barrage, Nellore Barrage, Chitravathi Balansing Reservoir Right Canal (Lingala Canal) including Pulivendula branch canal, Gandikota Lift Irrigation Scheme, AVR HNSS Project, Somasila Project, Telugu Ganga and Pula Subbaiah Veligonda Projects. Officials said 95% of Modernisation of Mylavaram Canals, 96% of Gugu Raghavendra LIS, 96.5% of Gudlakamma Project, 90% of Somasila Project, 90% of the Telugu Ganga Project, 85% of the PABR Project-Stage II, 78% of the GNSS-Phase I, 97% of HNSS-Phase I, 80% Phase II are completed.

Small pending issues like forest clearance of few tracts of land, construction of power sub-stations etc are to be completed. All these projects except Pula Subbaiah Valigonda project is slated to be completed by 2013-14 and Mylavaram and Guru Raghavendra LIS are to be completed during 2012-13.

Indian Overseas Bank aims to open 40 agri business branches (http://www.rupeetimes.com/news/personal_loan/indian_overseas_bank_aims_to_open_40_agri_business_branches_7588.html)

Indian Overseas Bank has laid an ambition to open 40 new specialized agri business branches to focus on the rural lending, with two of the branches in Andhra Pradesh, according to Mr. M Narendra, Chairman and Managing Director of Indian Overseas Bank.

After inaugurating the new premises of the regional office of IOB, he said, "There is immense potential for such branches in Andhra Pradesh too, and we are initially planning two such branches in Godavari district".

Mr. Narendra said that the bank will be focus on lending to small farmers and agri-processing units rather than promoting high-tech agriculture. Around 70 per cent of the branches are in the rural and semi-urban areas. The bank has also pumped in additional investments of Rs 616 crore apart from crop loans.

Mr. Narendra also said that the bank had introduced special loan schemes for urban horticulture. According to this scheme, a borrower could take loan of Rs 25ooo to Rs 2.5 lakh for raising a roof garden or a backyard garden. While, institutes can borrow up to Rs 25 lakh. The bank is aiming to lend at least Rs 100 crore under the head during the current year.

The bank is also focusing on the small and medium enterprise by opening SME loan processing center.

CM hikes input subsidy for paddy (http://www.thehansindia.info/News/Article.asp?category=1&subCategory=2&ContentId=106025)

Nilam loss pegged at Rs 3650 crore
Asks official to coordinate with CCI on cotton purchases
Plan to eliminate middlemen in cotton purchases
Transco asked to waive penalties on ginning mills


paddy awash with sand following a breach in the bund in Vizianagaram.

Hyderabad: The loss of Nilam Cyclone was estimated at Rs 3650 crore and the government requested the Centre to give relief assistance of Rs 1000 crore immediately.

The state government has sent the report on Nilam to the Centre explaining that the agricultural crop was damaged in five lakh hectares and horticulture crops in 27,273 hectares.

Keeping this in view the Chief Minister on Monday announced the enhancement of input subsidy for paddy, groundnut, cotton, sugarcane, chilly, vegetables, onions, papaya, flowers and watermelon from Rs 6000 to Rs 10,000 per hectare. Input subsidy for maize was hiked from Rs 5,000 to Rs 8,333 and Rs 3,000 to Rs 5000 for jowar, bajra, raagi, castor, sesamum and alovera.

This decision was taken after a review meeting with the marketing, electricity department and CCI officials about cotton procurement by CCI and NAFED in the State. The issue of penalties raised by the representatives of ginning mills was discussed and APTRANSCO was asked to waive the same for the period between November 7 and 23, 2012 which is the issue of dispute and the announcement was made in the Legislative Council.

The Chief Minister said, out of 400 lakh quintals of approximate cotton production during this year, so far 80 lakh quintals have been purchased and 40 lakh quintals are purchased by CCI and balance by private traders.

CCI and marketing department officials were strictly asked to ensure that only the quantities brought to the market yard by the farmers are purchased by the CCI and nowhere middlemen should be allowed to enter into the picture. This should be implemented by strict vigilance both by the marketing department officials as well as by the CCI, he said.

The Chief Minister asked the senior officers of the marketing department to make intensive tours, go to the main districts where cotton is grown in Adilabad, Warangal, Guntur, Karimnagar, Khammam and Nalgonda and sort out any local problems in cotton procurement. He asked the officials to ensure MSP is paid to cotton farmers and that no middlemen should be allowed in CCI cotton purchase centres and payments are made promptly to the farmers.

Paddy farmers content as they get more than MSP (http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/andhra-pradesh/paddy-farmers-content-as-they-get-more-than-msp/article4242609.ece)

Establishment of paddy procurement centres cited as the reason for farmers getting more

Thanks to the paddy procurement centres established by the district administration, the farmers have benefited by the steps put in place by the government. They are able to get more than Minimum Support Price (MSP) being offered by the government from the traders.

The farmers are being offered more than Rs. 1,300 per quintal by the traders where as the MSP being extended by the government was Rs. 1,250 for general variety and Rs. 1,280 for grade-I paddy. Similarly, the preferred variety- BPT- is being procured by these centres at a price of Rs. 1,500 whereas the traders are offering between Rs. 1,800 and Rs. 1,900.

While officials attribute the reason for farmers getting more than MSP to establishment of procurement centres, the farmers’ union activists say that reduction of paddy production area was one of the main reasons for that. It is informed that millers from even Andhra area are visiting here to get the paddy for milling.

Meanwhile, the district administration has been repeating the successful experiment of ‘local rice for Public Distribution System (PDS) locally’. For this purpose, 8,950 metric tonnes of rice was already acquired and kept in godowns. The experiment was being repeated in Dubbak Assembly constituency where enough godown space was available.

They feel that this would reduce the transport cost to farmers in addition to providing a chance for milling local paddy with quality. To mill the paddy, about 50 rice-mills were identified and the local tahasildars were entrusted with the job of supervising the milling and maintaining the quality.

“This will make the job easy for PDS system. In addition to creating local jobs in the process, we are able to reduce the cost of transportation. This is being experimented across the State,’’ Joint Collector A. Shsarth told The Hindu.

3 lakh hectares of land in East Godavari to be irrigated: Reddy (http://zeenews.india.com/news/andhra-pradesh/3-lakh-hectares-of-land-in-east-godavari-to-be-irrigated-reddy_821142.html)

Rajahmundry: Three lakh hectares of land in East Godavari district will be irrigated by March, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy announced Sunday.

"Water will be provided to three lakh acres by March this year in East Godavari district," Reddy said after inaugurating the Indira Jala Prabha scheme at Vajrakutam village under Gollaprolu mandal of the district.

" 1,231 acres of land has been brought under cultivation in the district and 69 bore-wells dug up under the Rs 1,800 crore 'Indira Jala Prabha' scheme. The chief minister was accompanied by Union Minister Jairam Ramesh, state Home Minister Sabita Indra Reddy and others.

Lower Penganga irrigation project awaits MoEF nod (http://www.projectstoday.com/News/Lower-Penganga-irrigation-project-awaits-MoEF-nod)

Lower Penganga irrigation project between Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh is awaiting MoEF nod.
Work on the project is expected to start as soon as the project gets MoEF approval. The proposed project was estimated to Rs 1,042 crore in July 1982, while in 2008-09 it raised upto Rs 10,429.39 crore. The Vidarbha Irrigation Development Corporation ( VIDC) had granted administrative approval to the project only in August 2009. Further if the villagers opposes the project cost can rise to Rs 13,000 crore, given the delays and inflation. VIDC admitted cost revision was inevitable due to various factors.
The Lower Penganga project was in controversy after a multi-crore irrigation scam in Maharashtra came to the fore. The Maharashtra Government has given go-ahead for the project in 2007. MoEF’s expert appraisal committee ( EAC) has asked the Andhra Pradesh Government to carry out a baseline environmental monitoring for the pre-monsoon, monsoon and post-monsoon seasons in a year.

AP to set up panel on exclusive budget for agriculture (http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/agri-biz/ap-to-set-up-panel-on-exclusive-budget-for-agriculture/article4350866.ece?ref=wl_industry-and-economy)

Will comprise Rs 100-cr pilot project to introduce solar pump sets

HYDERABAD, JAN. 27:
The Andhra Pradesh Government will appoint a coordination committee to finalise the proposal to go for the exclusive budget for the agricultural sector.

The Finance Minister has agreed to carve out a separate budget for the primary sector. But we need to distinguish allocations for this sector and other allied sectors,” the official said.

The Ministers, Principal Secretaries and Commissioners of these sectors are expected to be members of the committee, which will discuss the nitty-gritty of the upcoming Budget.

“Though time is very short for preparation of the budget, the Government has decided to go ahead with the separate budget for agriculture,” a top official of Agriculture Ministry told Business Line.

POWER CRISIS

The Agriculture Budget is all set to address the issue of power shortage. It would comprise a Rs 100-crore pilot project to introduce solar pump sets in 3-4 districts.

“The Chief Minister has okayed the proposal. The file is with the Finance Minister for his approval,” the official said.

The cost of each pump set is expected to be around Rs 4-6 lakh.

“The Agriculture Minister Kanna Lakshminarayana is very keen on this project as the agricultural sector is reeling under severe power crisis. Each set is expected to supply nine hours of power. This would augment the regular supply,” the official said.

The State is deliberating on the huge initial costs that might create a hindrance in popularising the scheme. It is discussing on the final cost of the unit and the subsidy component.

Acute shortage of power has hit the farming community this summer, forcing the officials to appeal to the farmers not to go for the water-intensive paddy.

This, in turn, would put pressure on the demand of power, which is already in short supply.

“We are planning to address this issue in the Budget. If successful, we can expand the scheme to other parts of the State,” the official said.

Irrigation projects waiting to see the light of the day (http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Visakhapatnam/irrigation-projects-waiting-to-see-the-light-of-the-day/article4400004.ece)

http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/01359/08VZVISKPAGE5_6DAM_1359279g.jpg

http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/01359/08VZDAM_eps_1359280g.jpg

Leaders of north Andhra region fail to take up the cause

The intransigent attitude of successive governments of Odisha towards settlement of inter-State disputes, particularly with reference to Vamsadhara stage II and Janjhavathi irrigation projects, much against the spirit of federalism and indifferent attitude of people’s representatives of north Andhra region in jointly working to find solutions for over three decades, landed the people, particularly farmers of the two States, in doldrums.

The Odisha government’s evasive attitude in not honouring inter-State agreements is adversely affecting the economy of north Andhra resulting in wasteful flow of 100 tmc ft of water of Nagavali and Vamsadhara rivers into the sea every year. Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam have cultivable land of 25 lakh acres but only eight lakh acres are under cultivation. The end-result over the years is mass migration of farmers in search of livelihood from this area, particularly from Srikakulam and Vizianagaram rural areas. An estimated five lakh farmers turned construction labourers and migrated to major cities, mostly to Hyderabad.

The two projects could not see the light of the day despite top political leaders belonging to the Congress and Telugu Desam parties representing the region. During the past three decades leaders like K. Yerrannaidu, Kimidi Kala Venkata Rao, Tammineni Seetharam, K. Pratibha Bharati, P. Ashok Gajapathi Raju, M.V.V.S. Murthi and several others of Telugu Desam Party represented the region for a long time. Similarly Minister for Roads and Buildings Dharmana Prasada Rao, Minister for Transport and PCC president Botcha Satyanarayana and T. Subbarami Reddy of the Congress are representing the region for over a decade.

President of Uttarandhra Rakshana Vedika S.S. Shiva Sankar and activist of the Vedika and former Superintending Engineer (irrigation) Narayana Raju felt that these leaders could have jointly made efforts to reason with the Odisha government to honour agreements already arrived at. Had the people’s representatives of the region taken up the cause to its logical end, north Andhra would have turned into a fertile and prosperous region.

Even at the State-level, a mind-boggling, 3,000 tmc ft of water is wastefully flowing into the sea and a pittance of 70 tmc ft of water is being used. This reflects on the political leadership and the TDP and the Congress party in power during the past three decades.

The Vamsadhara Stage II project which is under active consideration since 1980s has not seen the light of the day despite a plethora of meetings, discussions and formal agreements between the two States. The project implementation is dragging on and struck roadblocks and currently got stranded at the level of constitution of a tribunal as ordered by the Supreme Court in 2008.

Former Chief Engineer (irrigation) S. Satyanarayana told The Hindu that Odisha government was evasive even after agreeing to the compensation and rehabilitation package offered by A.P. to the project evacuees in Odisha. Now it is raising the bogey of tribal rights and other irrelevant issues.

He also expressed sadness at the people’s representatives of the region for their disinterest towards the regional issues which has a bearing on the economy of the region and the backwardness of the region in general.

N Kiran Kumar Reddy follows Narendra Modi! (http://postnoon.com/2013/02/15/n-kiran-kumar-reddy-follows-narendra-modi/108731)

Modi inspires Kiran when dealing with farmers.

TGujarat bug has indeed bitten the Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy. In an attempt to emulate the policies and programmes implemented by the Gujarat government, the AP CM seems to have decided to implement Modi government’s policies in the agricultural sector of the State.

The State does not have any dedicated electricity lines like Gujarat. The State government had decided to set up an exclusive call centre for farmers in AP. The most important objective behind setting up this call centre is to achieve two important goals. The first is to prevent farmers of the State from suffering power cuts due to damaged transformers and by replacing the transformers immediately on receipt of a complaint from farmers. The second is to ensure dedicated power supply for a specified period of time to the farming sector every day.

According to sources, frequent transformer failures across the State is causing a lot of problems to farmers, besides leading to disruption of power supply. To avoid this, the State has now decided to replace the transformers within 48 to 72 hours from the receipt of the complaint through the call centre.

“The call centre will help us locate the failed transformer so we can work on it quickly. Upon receiving the information, we will immediately replace it within the stipulated period of time. This will prevent the farmers from facing further agony,” a senior official of the State government told Postnoon. In Gujarat also, a similar system exists where transformers are replaced within a deadline. The Congress leaders feel that this idea will definitely endear themselves to the people of the State in the coming days.

Andhra Pradesh plans special budget for agriculture (http://postnoon.com/2013/02/26/andhra-pradesh-plans-special-budget-for-agriculture/111018)

The ensuing annual budget of the State, which has been in the news for the government’s decision to depart from conventional presentation of the budget and adopt the practice being followed in Parliament, will be unique in other ways too.

From the next financial year, the State will have a special budget for agriculture and its allied departments, including horticulture, sericulture, animal husbandry, fisheries, forest, co-operative and irrigation department.

The State is perhaps the first to introduce a special budget for agriculture and allied activities in the entire country. Speaking to Postnoon, State agriculture minister Kanna Lakshmi*narayana said that the State government had taken this decision to instil confidence among the farmers. “The farmers of the State have been facing lot of problems since the last couple of years due to natural calamities like drought and untimely rains. These continuous calamities put the farmer community into a state of shock and plunged them into crisis. A special budget for the farmers will help in instilling confidence among them. It will also help in serving the farmers in a more effective manner as the budgets of other allied departments have,” he said.

The minister held a high-level review meeting with officials of agriculture and other departments recently. Cabinet ministers also participated. The meeting discussed threadbare the precautions required to be taken before the introduction of the special budget.

During the current financial year, the State government had allocated a `28,000 crore budget for agriculture and allied sectors. The special budget for agriculture is likely to have a substantial increase, owing to the State’s increased focus on the farmer community in recent times.

HNSS works speeded up (http://www.deccanchronicle.com/130228/news-current-affairs/article/hnss-works-speeded)

Anantapur: The government was firm in its decision to release water for kharif season through Ananta Venkata Reddy Handri Neeva Sujala Sravanthi (HNSS) irrigation project.

Though several works were pending at many stages in the phase-I in Kurnool and Anantapur districts, the revenue minister N. Raghuveera Reddy had directed the irrigation officials to complete all the works to supply Krishna water for kharif season.

Mr Raghuveera Reddy, who reviewed the works of HNSS project with the higher officials in Hyderabad two days ago, found many works incomplete.The first phase of HNSS project was designed to irrigate more than 2 lakh acres from Malyala to Jeedipalli reservoir in Anantapur district.

Though Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy had formally launched phase-I of the project at Jeedipalli and released water three months ago, many structures were still pending in between Malyala and Jeedipalli, sources said.

In addition, the irrigation authorities have identified more than 20 defects including breaches and poor quality works in between 31-35 packages.

Mr Raghuveera Reddy told this correspondent that engineers had been directed to rectify all the defects en route the main canal, pumping station and reservoirs.

“Irrigation chief secretary B. Aravinda Reddy has been asked to concentrate on completion of all works by June,”he said.

All the eight pumping stations were equipped with motors to pump water by June, Anantapur superintending engineer B. Sudhakar Babu said.

Government wanted to fill Krishnagiri, Pathikonda reservoirs located in Kurnool and Jeedipalli in Anantapur with Krishna backwaters to irrigate surrounding fields in the ensuing kharif season. “As many as 27 minor irrigation tanks en route the main canal would be filled with Krishna water in addition to the reservoirs,” Mr Raghuveera Reddy said.

The minister also directed the irrigation officials to arrange field-level visits at Jeedipalli in first week of March to review second phase of the project.

In addition, officials received complaints from the villagers of Jeedipalli, located a few metres away from reservoir over seepage of water into the houses.

The superintending engineer said that a report would be sent to the government seeking rehabilitation of the villagers.

Agri Budget: AP to hold talks with farmers (http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/states/agri-budget-ap-to-hold-talks-with-farmers/article4488312.ece)

HYDERABAD, MARCH 8:
As it gears up to present the first ever exclusive Budget for Agriculture, the Andhra Pradesh Government will hold talks with the leaders of various farmers’ organisations on March 11.

“We will take their opinions on the constitution of the Budget. From our side, Ministers and officials of nine Ministries and departments will take part in the meeting,” Kanna Lakshminarayana, Minister for Agriculture, said here on Friday.

Earlier in the day, he took part in a meeting with Finance Minister Anam Ramnarayana Reddy and officials of Agriculture, Finance and Planning Departments. The State will form a committee to ensure coordination among all the nine departments.

Farmer lays foundation for Polavaram first phase (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/visakhapatnam/Farmer-lays-foundation-for-Polavaram-first-phase/articleshow/18872279.cms)

ANGALURU (EAST GODAVARI): In a low-key affair, the foundation stone for the controversial Polavaram project was laid on Friday, not by the chief minister or any political bigwig, but by a farmer.

This may be the first time that a farmer has laid the foundation stone for a mega project. The farmer, president of the Rythu Karyacharana Samithi M V Satyanarayana, also performed the 'bhoomi puja' for the project at Angaluru village in East Godavari district in the presence of executive director of the Transstroy-JESUES (United Engineering Services) consortium N Sambasiva Rao and other farmers.

The state government had recently awarded the Rs 4,054-crore Polavaram first phase contract to the consortium, which involves the construction of an earthen-cum-rock fill dam, spillway and penstocks for a powerhouse.

After the 'bhoomi puja', Sambasiva Rao announced that the construction would start soon, but did not specify by when it would be completed. The proposed project would hold 75.2 tmc ft of water, which would facilitate irrigation of over 2.5 lakh acres of agricultural land in the districts of Krishna, West Godavari, East Godavari, Visakhapatnam, Vizianagaram and Srikakulam, according to the project report. The hydro power project would have 12 water turbines, each of which would be capable of generating 80 MW of power.

Polavaram project kicks off, finally

The laying of the foundation stone is a huge step forward for the Polavaram project, which was stuck since it was initially conceived in 1941 under the plan to link two rivers, at an initial estimated cost of Rs 6.5 crore. The design was modified during 1946-47 and the project was rechristened as Ramapada Sagar Project as the water from the reservoir was supposed to touch the Ram temple in Bhadrachalam. The estimated cost of the project had then risen to Rs 129 crore.

In 1980, then chief minister T Anjaiah laid the foundation stone but the project did not take off due to resistance from the villagers whose land would be submerged once the dam comes up. There were also discrepancies over the design and the dam head had to be shifted close to the Papikondalu gorge.

In 2004, the late chief minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy took the initiative amid much resistance and controversies. The project is facing stiff resistance from the communist parties in the state and the Telangana Rashtra Samithi who feel that the project would be detrimental to the Telangana region.

Even states such as Odisha and Chhattisgarh raised objections to the project, reasoning it on the submergence of land and water sharing issues. This resulted in the initiation of the Godavari Water Disputes Tribunal in 1980 and an agreement was reached as part of the tribunal to enable the construction of the project under certain modified specifications.

The recent awarding of the contract to Transstroy was also mired in controversy. The TRS claimed that Congress MP from Guntur Rayapati Sambasiva Rao has business interests in Transstroy. The infrastructure firm was allotted the contract over other contending firms such as Soma-CGG CTV, Madhucon-Sinu Hydro and SEW Infrastructure Ltd, as it stood the lowest with a quote of Rs 4,054 crore over the government's price of Rs 4,717 crore.

Andhra Pradesh to come out with special budget on agriculture (http://articles.economictimes.indiatimes.com/2013-03-08/news/37561915_1_agriculture-special-budget-andhra-pradesh)

HYDERABAD: Andhra Pradesh government has decided to introduce a special budget for agriculture from this year with a view to giving fresh push to the sector.

Finance Minister A Ramanarayana Reddy and Agriculture Minister K Lakshminarayana held a meeting here today on the agriculture budget with officials of Finance, Agriculture and Planning departments.


Observing that the Congress government has been laying emphasis on agriculture for the last nine years, Reddy said the special budget would focus on growth and welfare of the farm sector and those dependent on it.

The budget would cover allocations for nine departments, the Finance Minister said.

Noting that government intends to take the views of various stakeholders on board in preparing the budget, the Agriculture Minister said he would hold a meeting with the leaders of various farmer associations on March 11.

The special exercise is aimed at promoting the welfare of the farming community in the state, Lakshminarayana said.

Andhra Pradesh is predominantly an agrarian state with rice, pulses, cereals, cotton, chillies, vegetables, fishing, aquaculture being the primary crops cultivated in the state.

http://irrigation.cgg.gov.in/OngMaj/PolavaramMap.jpg


Polavaram Project Map

AP: All party meet over Babli irrigation project on March 26 (http://newindianexpress.com/states/andhra_pradesh/article1509632.ece)

Andhra Pradesh government has convened an all-party meeting here on March 26 to discuss the fallout of the recent verdict of Supreme Court on the controversial Babli irrigation project built by neighbouring Maharashtra on river Godavari.

The government is seeking to elicit views of all political parties on the issue based on which its future course of action will be planned.

Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy will chair the all-party meet.

"We will consider the objections and suggestions of all the parties and then decide whether or not to file a review petition in Supreme Court," the Chief Minister told reporters here this afternoon.

AP and Maharashtra were engaged in a legal as well as political battle for many years over the construction of Babli project that could store 7.5 TMC ft (Thousand Million Cubic Feet) of water.

The Maharashtra government went ahead with construction of the dam and also installed the crest gates despite objections raised by the Central Water Commission.

In its verdict delivered last month, the Supreme Court, however, permitted Maharashtra to complete the irrigation project and impound 2.74 TMC ft of water.

After the apex court's verdict went in favour of Maharashtra, the Chief Minister said there was "no loss to the state."

"On the face of it, there is no loss to the state in general and the farmers in particular. I have full trust in the Supreme Court's judgement," the Chief Minister had said on March 1.


Reddy said Maharashtra, as per the Supreme Court verdict, was entitled to utilise only 2.74 TMC ft of water through Babli project out of its total share of 60 TMC ft of Godavari water.

"I have no doubts. I have faith in the Supreme Court judgement. Any state should honour it. If not, it will have to face contempt," he replied, when asked if Maharashtra would implement the Supreme Court order in letter and in spirit.

He pointed out that a three-member committee appointed by the apex court would monitor utilisation of water by Maharashtra.

Opposition parties, however, were highly critical of the Congress government for having failed to effectively put forth the state's arguments in the Supreme Court that ultimately resulted in a ruling in favour of Maharashtra.

Against this backdrop, the state government has convened a meeting on March 26 to elicit views of all parties on the future course of action to be adopted.

Government may come clean on agricultural action plan today (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Government-may-come-clean-on-agricultural-action-plan-today/articleshow/19080761.cms)

HYDERABAD: The state government is planning to make changes in the 'agriculture action plan' which was tabled in the assembly by agriculture minister Kanna Lakshminarayana on Monday. The report was tabled in the council by assembly affairs minister D Sridhar Babu.

The government plans to remove the word 'agriculture budget' which was uttered 42 times by Kanna Lakshminarayana while presenting the action plan on Monday. A statement is expected from the government on Wednesday in both the Houses. The government is also getting ready to reply to the criticism levelled against it by the opposition parties.

Speaker Nadendla Manohar is expected to give his ruling on the budget which was read out in the House without the approval of the business advisory committee. Lok Satta member Jayaprakash Narayan's privilege notice is also pending with the Speaker.

On Tuesday morning, finance minister Anam Ramnarayan Reddy and assembly affairs minister D Sridhar Babu consulted Aassembly secretary Raja Sadaram to seek clarity on the issue.

Work on Veligonda project resumes

http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/01406/HY25VELIGONDA_1406676f.jpg

The massive Veligonda project. Photo: Special Arrangement



Operations disrupted after tunnel boring machine breaks down

A group of mechanical engineers, specially brought from Italy, have successfully repaired the Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM) purchased from a US firm - Robins for Rs.120 crore for the gigantic Veligonda, a project taken up to benefit the vast fluoride- affected areas in Prakasam, Kadapa and Nellore districts.

It’s like acquiring a new asset worth that much. The gargantuan machine on rails that resembles a long goods wagon and moves inch by inch, boring holes sideways, is most sought-after device in the whole world for excavating tunnels of massive diameter, substituting the time-consuming and hazard-prone manual blasting method.

The TBM was damaged when a portion of the roof of the tunnel it was drilling, collapsed on it. By then, it had completed eight km of one of the twin tunnels, planned for Veligonda each with 18-km length to draw 53 tmcft of water from Srisailam reservoir lying 40 km away during the flood season (July-October). This tunnel is of seven metre diameter. The 40-km stretch will be covered by a gravitation canal partially linked to the tunnels. The government had lost every hope of restoring the machine as repeated attempts earlier by site engineers to rectify it turned futile. After overhauling, the TBM is being pressed into service in two days, says V. Veeraju, Chief Engineer, Irrigation, Prakasam. A second 9.2- metre diameter tunnel is similarly completed for 7.5 km using a bigger TBM (cost Rs.150 crore). Conceived by K. Sriramakrishnaiah, Irrigation adviser to NTR and named after Poola Subbaiah, a communist leader who fought for such a project as a permanent solution to fluoride-affected areas, was finally taken up under Jalayagnam.

Planned at a cost of Rs.5,150 crore to irrigate 4.5 lakh acres in the three districts and provide drinking water to 15.25 lakh population in 30 affected mandals, Veligonda is expected to change crop pattern in the area. Interestingly, a 40-sq km area surrounded by hills at Veligonda will be converted into the project’s reservoir filled with Srisailam water. Three imposing dams have been built as part of the project at Sunkesula, Gottipadia and Kakarla to fill the gaps between hills. Sixty per cent of Veligonda into which a sum of Rs.3,148 crore has been pumped so far, is completed.



source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/work-on-veligonda-project-resumes/article4546486.ece?homepage=true

Solar energy for farm sector implausible (http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/solar-energy-for-farm-sector-implausible/article4616633.ece)

Switchover tough due to expensive pumpsets

Any plan to solve the power shortage problem by replacing the present 32 lakh conventional agriculture pumspets in the State with solar energy-linked pumpsets (SELP) appears to be a tall order under the present circumstances.

Thirty per cent of the electricity supplied by AP Transco in the State (now about 250 million units (mu) daily compared to the overall power demand of 310 mu) will always be claimed by the agriculture pumpsets, except on a few days during a year as found in a survey.

A total substitution of existing pumpsets by SELPs will thus save 75 mu daily. Using this, the demand can be fully met and supply made round the clock even to rural areas, the worst-hit under the power cuts now.

Complete switchover

But, a complete switchover to SELPs, however, seems to be an impossibility because of the prohibitive cost of such pumpsets. Grandiose plans are drawn up by the Government to connect the solar-linked pumpsets to State Grid so that the surplus power available from them when they are not used by farmers, can be transferred to general consumers.

Preliminary assessment

According to a preliminary assessment made by the Government, the replacement will cost Rs 3 lakh for one pumpset.

Huge budget

At this rate, a huge budget of Rs 96,000 crore will be required for a cent per cent coverage.

Even if the purchase of SELP is subsidised by the Centre and the State to the tune of 30 per cent and 20 per cent respectively as is being planned, the farmers may not be in a position to bear the remaining burden--Rs 1.5 lakh each.

Track record

Judging by their track record, the farmers are unlikely to come forward even to bear this, a Transco official said. He was referring to how they turned “indifferent” to repeated orders issued ever since the former Chief Minister, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy’s time asking them to install friction-less foot valves, capacitors, plastic pipes, ISI-branded pumps and motors for their pumpsets as part of demand-side management (DSM) measures to reduce agriculture demand.

The AP performance in solar energy area is so poor that it has only 23 MW capacity under solar plants with AP Genco accounting for only one MW out of this.

To raise output, AP will focus on farm mechanisation (http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/agri-biz/to-raise-output-ap-will-focus-on-farm-mechanisation/article4654304.ece)

HYDERABAD, APRIL 25:
The Andhra Pradesh Government is sharpening focus on farm mechanisation to increase output

State Minister for Agriculture Kanna Laxmi Narayana, said the State Government had taken up an action plan involving an investment of Rs 2,500 crore for farm mechanisation last year. “This year, we will initiate smaller programmes at the district level,” the Minister said.

He inaugurated a four-day Agritex programme here today, being organised by the Hyderabad International Trade Expositions Ltd. It will be bringing together the farming community, agriculture specialists and service providers through an agricultural direction and trade fair programme.

The event is expected to cover one lakh farmers during the course of the four days. It will also feature exhibition and sale of various farming needs and equipment, including seeds and tractors.

“It has over 150 exhibitors, including manufacturers of seeds, pesticides and fertilisers,” Sambit Mund, Head Trade Fair Division of HITEX, said.

Over 100 irrigation projects facing land acquisition, other snags (http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/over-100-irrigation-projects-facing-land-acquisition-other-snags/article4660989.ece)

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/multimedia/dynamic/01441/BL28_P3_CANAL_1441397f.jpg

NEW DELHI, APRIL 27:
Over 100 major and medium irrigation projects and about 2,000 surface minor ones across the country have been facing delays due to land acquisition and other problems.

Of the major and medium projects, the maximum number facing delays is in Andhra Pradesh (19), Maharashtra (18) and Odisha (10), according to the Water Resources Ministry. Of these 105 major and medium projects, close to 70 are facing land acquisition hurdles.

POOR RESPONSE

Most of these projects fall under the Centre’s Accelerated Irrigation Benefits Programme (AIBP) for which assistance worth Rs 5,904 crore was released in 2012-13 out of the Rs 9,969.50 crore allocated for the year.

For instance, in Andhra Pradesh, the Indra Sagar Polavaram project, due for completion in 2014-15, has been facing delays due to land acquisition and court cases. A sum of Rs 2,530 crore has already been spent on the project since it was included under the AIBP in 2008-09, according to the Ministry data given out by the Water Resources Minister Harish Rawat in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha last week.

The J. Chokka Rao project, due for completion this fiscal, is also stuck due to poor response from bidders and land acquisition issues.

Similarly, the Saryu Nahar project in Uttar Pradesh, due for completion in 2014-15, is facing land acquisition hurdles even as Rs 2,708 crore has already been spent on it. In Tripura, the Bansagar Canal project, on which Rs 2,208 crore has been spent, is stuck because of land as well as geotechnical complications and seepage problems.

MINOR SCHEMES

In Karnataka, the Upper Krishna II project, due for completion in 2010-11, has yet to move ahead as the tendering process has been delayed, even as Rs 3,598 crore has already been spent on it.

In the surface minor irrigation category under AIBP, over 2,000 projects are facing delays, of which 1,181 projects are in ‘special category’ States and 446 in the ‘non-special’ States.

The largest number of minor projects facing delays is in Uttarakhand at 451, Assam (384), Himachal Pradesh (168) and Jharkhand (149).

Law and order problems and inadequate budgets by the States concerned have been cited as key factors behind the delays in Assam and Jharkhand, while the hill States of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh have cited limited working season and inadequate State budget as reasons.

As per AIBP guidelines, major and medium projects are to be completed in four years and surface minor ones in two years after inclusion under the scheme.

Hay-granary technology still popular in Krishna (http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/haygranary-technology-still-popular-in-krishna/article4660209.ece)


Farmers having a land-holding of not less than four-acres are largely dependent on traditional ‘Purri (granary)’ method of storing foodgrains, arguably free from rot and rain affect.
Gone are the days in Krishna district where farmers had to depend on middlemen for selling crop, as they had no godown space to store the produce till it fetched remunerative price. In this traditional farmers’ technology, two-lines of large rope made of spliced hay is tied surrounding a mud-clad space created with gunny bags and the soil for basement.
While constructing the hay rope granary, some farmers use gunny bags to create necessary space, which is simultaneously filled by pouring grains, others make a tight rope tied around a mud wall. “The granary set up in open space would never absorb rainwater and grains are safe from any weather condition” said a woman farmer and entrepreneur M. Vijaya Lakshmi from Kuchipudi.
“It’s a method in which rotting of grains is never reported and even mice cannot gain entry due to its thickness and strength,” added Vijaya Lakshmi, who built 120-bag capacity granary outside her residence by spending Rs.1,500 for labour charges. The strength of the granary depends on how much hay is used in the making of the rope. Irrespective of height or width, each granary serves the purpose for two-years to store grains.
This kind of granary is largely being used to store paddy and blackgram in Krishna district. Unprecedented number of hay granaries welcome the visitor in the villages which are far from mandal headquarters, and which are plagued by poor transportation facilities. Even in Diviseema and Kuchipudi areas village elders said that the farmers in Krishna district used to store grain underground till 1980s.
While small farmers prefer the method of storing grains for their domestic needs, middle and big farmers construct it in business interest, and store the produce till price in market goes up. “This age-old rural technology is a boon for people like me as I have no space inside the house to store the produce,” said Peketi Seetarami Reddy of Kaja village in Movva.
Mr. Reddy, tenant farmer in 23 acres, also buys paddy from his fellow farmers at low prices and stores it for better marketing prices in his 150-bags capacity hay granary. Expert in making hay granary construction, 55-year-old K. Seetaramayya of Arisepalli is happy that the work keeps him busy every January and brings numerous orders. He reveals that he too set up a granary, storing barely 15-bags of paddy for domestic grain storage.

Officials differ on raising Kadem dam height (http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/officials-differ-on-raising-kadem-dam-height/article4661447.ece)


Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy’s recent assurance of increasing the height of the famous Kadem major irrigation project has raised hopes of thousands of farmers in Adilabad district. In the opinion of engineers however, the move to raise the height of the dam could turn out to be a major environmental disaster, even if it is an easy way of improving its ayacut.Over half a century old now, the project presents all the problems typical of those where shoddy upkeep hits the capacity. The storage capacity of this dam has decreased considerably owing to silt deposit, estimated to be about 30 ft deep in the reservoir.
The project was commissioned hastily in 1962 despite the dam being raised only to a level of 700 ft. against the designed full reservoir level (FRL) of 710 ft. This rendered it capable of irrigating fields only in kharif season to an ayacut of about 70,000 acres.
Later, the developments saw the unofficial ayacut increase to about one lakh acres while the water was carried up to Mancherial mandal about 100 km away. The tail-end farmers nevertheless received water for irrigating their fields during the last quarter of the century as most of the flood water is wasted due to the ever decreasing storage capacity, now pegged at 7.5 tmc. According to authoritative estimates, Kadem project received over 1,300 tmc of flood water between 1972 and 2012. Of this, over 700 tmc was wasted thanks to the inherent flaws.
Irrigation engineers have submitted two different proposals for increasing the capacity of the project so that it will be beneficial to farmers in rabi season also. While one proposes to increase the dam height, the other envisages construction of a balancing reservoir upstream of the project which will replenish Kadem when required in rabi.
“An increase of 10 ft. in height will increase the storage capacity by 4.5 tmc but much reserve forest and part of five villages located across the reservoir will go under submergence. It will be better if the government constructs a balancing reservoir”, opines an engineer.

AP chief minister inaugurates two lift irrigation projects (http://www.indiatvnews.com/news/india/ap-chief-minister-inaugurates-two-lift-irrigation-projects-22595.html)

Vijayawada, May 5: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy inaugurated two lift irrigation projects at Ramannapet village on the banks of Krishna river in the Krishna district on Sunday.
These two irrigation projects were constructed by Andhra Pradesh Irrigation Development Corporation (APIIDC) at a cost of Rs 49.37 crore to provide irrigation water for about 10,000 acres of land in Gudimetla and Turlalpadu villages in Chandarlapadu mandal.

He also laid foundation stones for three more lift irrigation projects to be constructed by APIIDC at a cost of Rs 54.15 crore.

All these lift irrigation projects provide irrigation water for lands in about ten villages on the banks of river Krishna.

Irrigation projects reviewed (http://newindianexpress.com/cities/hyderabad/Irrigation-projects-reviewed/2013/05/07/article1578680.ece)

Construction of irrigation projects in Nellore district should be expedited, finance minister Anam Ramanarayana Reddy and major irrigation minister P Sudharshan Reddy have told the officials concerned.

Both the ministers reviewed the situation vis-a-vis progress of various irrigation projects in the tail-end coastal district, as several of the people’s representatives there had brought the delay in the completion of projects to the notice of chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy during his recent Indiramma Batta in Nellore district.

Land acquisition and forest department clearances for Telugu Ganga project works in the district were discussed at length.

The project still requires 1,239 acres of land in the district. In the case of Somasila project, administrative sanction has already been given for the required Rs 785 crore. It was decided to submit the Kavali canal repair cost estimate to the estimates committee.

According to officials, of the estimated cost of Rs 321 crore under package 1 of the Pennar delta, 113 crore has been spent so far.

The meeting also discussed irrigation water for farmers in Sullurpeta and drinking water for people of Naidupeta.

Government spent Rs 70 thousand crore on irrigation (http://newindianexpress.com/states/andhra_pradesh/Government-spent-Rs-70-thousand-crore-on-irrigation/2013/05/06/article1577301.ece)

Chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy inaugurated two lift irrigation schemes Gudimetla-2 and Turlapadu in Chandarlapadu mandal on the banks of river Krishna on Sunday.

The LI schemes were constructed at a cost of Rs 50 crore with the funds of NABARD and Remote and Interior Areas Development Funds (RIADF).

While the Gudimetla-2 LI scheme supplies irrigation water to several villages covering 4,900 acres in Chandarlapadu mandal, the Turlapadu scheme will supply irrigation water to 4,850 acres in the same mandal.

The chief minister also laid the foundation for construction of three more lift irrigation projects at Gani Atkuru, Kanchikacherla and Moguluru to supply irrigation water to more than 11,000 acres.

Water will be drawn from river Krishna and supplied to the lands with the help of pipelines and canals. A sub-station was built and free power will be supplied to the two LI schemes, he said.

K Mohana Rao, an elderly man, said that they could now cultivate crops like paddy with supply of water and recalled that they used to cultivate only cotton due to lack of irrigation facilities.

Addressing the villagers, chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy said that the government had spent `70,000 crore during the Congress regime to provide irrigation facility to 20 lakh acres land and efforts were on to irrigate another 10 lakh acres soon.

Giving details of the Polavaram project, Kiran Kumar Reddy said that Telangana and Rayalaseema regions would get 45 TMC of water with the completion of the mega project. He also listed out the welfare schemes being implemented by the present Congress government.

Union minister for rural development Jairam Ramesh was also present at the meet.

State to give a boost to drip irrigation (http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/state-to-give-a-boost-to-drip-irrigation/article4694787.ece)

The State government is contemplating to increase acreage for providing subsidy on drip irrigation, Chief Minister, N. Kiran Kumar Reddy said here on Tuesday.

Inaugurating a 10-day ‘Mango Mela’ at the Exhibition Grounds here, he said that already 70 per cent subsidy was being provided up to Rs.1 lakh to farmers on drip irrigation.

“We are looking to increase the subsidy”, he added.

Horticulture Minister Ramreddy Venkat Reddy later clarified that currently subsidy was being extended for an extent of 10 acres for big farmers and five acres for small farmers. It was being considered to increase the area.

The Chief Minister said the ‘Mango Mela’ was organised to ensure profitability to the farmer by selling his produce directly to the consumer without the involvement of middlemen.

Emphasising the need for better marketing facilities for fruits and flowers, he called for increasing exports.

Mr. Kiran Kumar Reddy urged farmers to diversify their activities into allied sectors like poultry, dairy and fisheries as depending solely on agriculture would not be remunerative.

Horticulture Minister Mr. Venkat Reddy said Andhra Pradesh stood first in mango cultivation. Although the fruit was being grown in an extent of 4.10 lakh acres, he said the yield was not encouraging this year.

He said that carbide-free mangoes from nine Telangana districts were being sold at the mela.

Subsidy

He said the farmers were being given 50 per cent subsidy on transport and free cold storage facilities for bringing their produce to the mela.

He said the Horticulture Department was also planning to hold a similar mela for sweet lime.

More than a dozen varieties of mangoes were on sale, including Banaganapalle, daseri, pedda rasaalu, himayat, alphonso and kesari.

According to the Horticulture Department officials, around 20 tonnes of mangoes were expected to be sold each day. About 600 tonnes of mangoes were sold last year during a month-long mela.

Similar 10-day Mango Melas would be held in Khammam, Tirupati and Visakhapatnam on Wednesday.

Govt unveils annual budget for Micro Irrigation scheme (http://www.projectstoday.com/News/Govt-unveils-annual-budget-for-Micro-Irrigation-scheme)

On 7 May, 2013, the Central Government, Ministry of Agriculture unveiled the annual budget outlay of National Mission on Micro Irrigation (NMMI) scheme for various states across the country.

The ministry has earmarked Rs 1693 crore for the financial year 2013-14. It has allotted Rs 295.00 crore to Andhra Pradesh; Rs 250.00 crore to Maharashtra; and to Gujarat Rs 200.00 crore. Under NMMI scheme, farmers are educated on the use of the micro irrigation system through demonstration, training and awareness programmes.

Compared to the financial year 2012-2013, the annual budget for 2013-2014 has been enhanced by approx. 13 per cent. The ministry has allotted Rs 1500 crore for the financial year 2012-13.

Efforts on to complete 46 irrigation projects: CM (http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/efforts-on-to-complete-46-irrigation-projects-cm/article4712395.ece)

Jalayagnam projects will provide water to 30 lakh acres of land, says Chief Minister

Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy has said that efforts were on to complete 46 irrigation projects under Jalayagnam programme to provide water for another 30 lakh acres this year.

Describing the programme as very ambitious and incredible, he said when it was undertaken many people had made sarcastic comments over it, but as the time gone by it started yielding good results. Thus, many projects, including Ali Sagar and Gutpa in the district, were complete and provided water to 22 lakh acres, he said.

Participating in the ‘Rythu Sadassu’ here on Monday, Mr. Kiran Kumar Reddy said that all-out efforts were being made to get the Pranahitha-Chevella and the Polavaram irrigation projects as national projects by exerting pressure on the Centre. “We all, including the MPs, would try to convince the Prime Minister and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi to accord national project status to the twin projects”, he said.

Once the Pranahitha-Chevella project is completed, it would turn the entire Telangana into greenary providing water to 16 lakh acres. It will also feed industries besides catering to drinking water needs of the twin cities. Over 3 lakh acres in Nizamabad will get water from it, he said.

When the Minister for Major Irrigation P. Sudarshan Reddy, who presided over the meeting, urged him to sanction another Rs. 150 crore for modernising distributaries and subdistributaries of Nizam Sagar project, the Chief Minister responded positively and asked him to send all the proposals relating to irrigation and developmental works in the district for perusal and acceptance.

Mr. Kiran Reddy conceded the demands to sanction Rs.10 crore to Telangana University, Rs. 35 crore for Government Medical College in Nizamabad, a polytechnic college for Bodhan constituency, and so on.

Earlier, he laid the foundation stone for three drinking water schemes costing about Rs. 34 crore for Jukkal Assembly constituency.

Agricultural Minister K. Lakshminarayana, Government Whip E. Anil and MP Madhu Goud also spoke.

Three major dam projects nearing completion (http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/three-major-dam-projects-nearing-completion/article4721615.ece)

Installation of crest-gates at Pulichintala, Yellampalli and Nagarjunasagar Tail-pond projects reach final stages

Works relating to installation of crest-gates on the dams of Pulichintala, Yellampalli and Nagarjunasagar Tail-pond projects, whose construction has been completed, has reached its final stage.

This is considered to be crucial and penultimate stage before the completion of the entire project.

The present status is such that plans have been drawn up to impound 45 tmcft (thousand million cubic ft) of water as originally designed, in the reservoir of Pulichintala from June-end using the floods in the Krishna river, if any, by that time.

Twenty out of the 24 crest-gates of the project have been installed on the solid structure so far and work is at brisk pace to erect the remaining four by mid-June.

Any sizeable quantity of water in Pulichintala will help in meeting the requirement of the Krishna delta, advancing kharif reason for this massive ayacut, and save that much of water in Nagarjunasagar, Srisailam and Jurala dams for being used for other projects like Srisailam Left Bank Canal, Kalwakurthy, Bhima, Nettempadu, Koilsagar, all in Telangana, and Hundri-Neeva etc in Rayalaseema.

In case of Nagarjunasagar Tail-pond dam, built cross the Krishna some 22 km downstream of Nagarjunasagar to put the reversible turbines of the giant powerhouse of Nagarjunasagar to use, eight out of the 20 crest-gates have been erected till now. The erection of the remaining 12 gates, however, will be completed only by December.

The delay in works is anticipated because of the possible floods in the Krishna, says B. V. L. Kumar, SE, AP Genco which is implementing the project.

YELLAMPALLI STATUS

Similarly, 30 out of the 62 crest-gates of Yellampalli dam, constructed across the Godavari in Karimnagar district as a multi-purpose project to serve as the balancing reservoir of the mega project of Pranahita-Chevella and the Hyderabad drinking water supply scheme, have been installed till now. Scores of engineers and workers are working round-the-clock to install the rest of the 32 gates by June 30 so that 20 tmcft of water can be impounded in its reservoirs as originally planned.

B. Hari Ram, project’s chief engineer, said the full capacity storage would be possible only on evacuation of some areas marked for submersion. Water was already being supplied from Yellampalli to NTPC’s 2,600-MW super thermal station at Ramagundam that is supporting all southern States.

Andhra Pradesh to seek revision of Supreme Court order on Babli project (http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/andhra-pradesh-to-seek-revision-of-sc-order-on-babli-project/1/272289.html)

An all-party meeting decided that Andhra Pradesh government will seek review/clarification from the Supreme Court on its orders about the Babli project neighbouring Maharashtra is building across the Godavari river.

Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy, who presided over the meeting here on Monday, agreed to hire the services of a senior Supreme Court advocate for the appeal. The meeting decided to take the step to safeguard the state's interests.

After receipt of a favourable direction from Supreme Court on the review/clarification, the state government will request the Central government for a joint meeting with Maharashtra government on this issue, said a statement from the chief minister's office.

The chief minister and opposition leaders were of unanimous view that the supervisory committee for the compliance of judgement should be empowered with executive powers for implementation of its directives.

The meeting has also opined that in case of defiance/violations of directives of the committee, stringent penalty need to be levied as determined by Supreme Court.

Leaders of Congress, Telugu Desam Party (TDP), Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS), YSR Congress party, Communist Party of India (CPI), Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) and other parties attended the meet.

This was the second all-party meet on the issue. At the earlier meeting on March 28, the government had decided to seek legal opinion on filing a review petition.

The Supreme Court Feb 28 allowed Maharashtra to go ahead with the project, rejecting Andhra Pradesh's plea to demolish the barrage. This verdict put an end to the seven-year-long legal battle between the two states.

The apex court also ordered the constitution of a three-member committee to supervise the construction of Babli. The committee will have one representative from the Central Water Commission (CWC) and one representative each from Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra. The CWC representative will be chairperson of the committee.

The Godavari flows from Nanded into the SRSP in Andhra Pradesh's Nizamabad district. Andhra Pradesh moved the Supreme Court in 2006, contending that if a dam was built upstream very close to this project, it would affect the water flow to the SRSP and six northern Telangana districts of Adilabad, Nizamabad, Karimnagar, Warangal, Nalgonda, Khammam and Medak.