Amid COVID-19 related impediments in mobilising the inputs such as investment credit, seed and fertilizer for the Vaanakalam crop season, the farming community across Telangana have taken to an early beginning of the farming operations, thanks to the early rains in the State, under the influence of a low pressure area over Bay of Bengal.
With 530 out of 563 rural mandals in the State recording either normal and more rainfall during the last 10 days, including 386 receiving large excess rain that is sufficient for taking up sowing, the farming community have started sowing operations with the hope that an early and in-time beginning of the agricultural season would always have an advantage for good crop yield. As on Thursday, the sowing operations have been taken up in over 1% (over one lakh acres) of the normal extent for the season — over 1.03 crore acres.
As part of the regulated farming system introduced by the State government, the Agriculture Department has estimated that cultivation of crops would be taken up in over 1.3 crore acres this season with area under cotton and paddy going beyond 1.07 crore acres followed by redgram in over 12.5 lakh acres, soyabean in 4.08 lakh acres and other crops in smaller extents. The Centre has allotted 22.3 lakh tonnes of fertilizers to Telangana for the first crop season.
According to official sources, the farming community has already purchased about 1.3 lakh tonnes of urea, 0.5 lakh tonnes of DAP, 0.15 lakh tonnes of muriate of potash, 1.25 lakh tonnes of NPKS, 0.1 lakh tonnes of other fertilizers so far. Besdies, the entire quantity of 1.3 lakh tonnes of seed of all crops was positioned to ensure that there’s no shortage of seed.
However, in the wake of regulated farming the demand for seed of cotton, paddy and redgram has gone up sharply in the rural areas making some unscrupulous traders resorting to the sale of uncertified seed with fake branding. Recently, the police in association of the Agriculture Department officials have busted spurious seed rackets in Karimnagar and Hyderabad indicating the thriving of the illegal activity.
