T'gana CM suggests growing cash crops after row over paddy

The Chief Minister, along with his Cabinet colleagues and other TRS leaders, held a dharna here last month demanding that the Centre specify the annual target for paddy procurement from Telangana.

Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Thursday suggested to farmers to go for cultivation of cash crops like groundnut, cotton, black gram and moong dal which have good demand in the market as an alternative to paddy. He said it is better to focus on other crops and try to change the crop pattern in the State instead of cultivating only paddy.

Rao, who was on a visit to Jogulamba Gadwal district, made a surprise visit to the fields at some villages where black gram and groundnut are being cultivated, an official press release said.

He interacted with farmers and asked them about yield, price for their produce and others, it said.

The farmers told him that black gram yield is about 8 to 12 quintals per acre and the MSP is Rs 6,300 per quintal, while the market price is above Rs 8,000 per quintal.

He instructed state Agriculture Minister S Niranjan Reddy to encourage crops that have demand in the markets, the release added.

Rao's comments came against the backdrop of an ongoing war of words between the TRS and BJP over paddy procurement. The Chief Minister, along with his Cabinet colleagues and other TRS leaders, held a dharna here last month demanding that the Centre specify the annual target for paddy procurement from Telangana. State BJP leaders, meanwhile, said there is no issue over paddy procurement and that the Centre would purchase paddy as per the agreement between the State government and Central agencies.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)