VIJAYAWADA: The State government has set an ambitious target of achieving a 30% growth rate in agriculture and allied sectors over the next five years, said Agriculture Minister Kinjarapu Atchannaidu.
Revealing the details of the review meeting on Tuesday, he said that the current growth rate of the primary sector stands at 15.85%, and the government’s aim is to double this figure.
He noted that horticulture crops are cultivated on 18 lakh hectares, generating a GVA-based revenue of Rs 1.52 lakh crore. In contrast, agriculture crops are grown on 52 lakh acres, generating just Rs 57,000 crore in GVA-based revenue. “The CM has decided to encourage cultivation of horticulture crops,” he explained.
As part of this initiative, Anantapur district will be developed as a horticulture hub on a pilot basis, with plans to expand to other districts in phases. Atchannaidu added that Rs 40 crore from NREGS funds have been allocated for the same.
They also decided to implement a system to cultivate three crops per year. The first cropping season will begin with transplantation in June, followed by a second cropping season for 80 days from October, and a third cropping season focusing on dry-irrigated crops.