KURNOOL: Declaring that the government’s goal is to provide irrigation water to every acre in Rayalaseema, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu distributed newly issued Pattadar Passbooks to farmers at a public programme held in Kothaburju village of the Dhone constituency in Nandyal district on Monday.
Addressing farmers, the Chief Minister said the government had adopted a transparent process by conducting land measurements in the presence of farmers and correcting mistakes in land records before issuing the new passbooks. He said the government had scrapped the controversial Andhra Pradesh Land Titling Act and initiated steps to rectify errors in land records that had created problems for farmers.
Chandrababu Naidu alleged that the previous government had misused Section 22A by registering private lands under restrictions, causing hardships to farmers. He said the new Pattadar Passbooks were being issued free of cost without any corruption and that farmers need not pay even a single rupee.
To strengthen security and transparency, the Chief Minister said QR codes and blockchain technology had been introduced to protect land records and prevent tampering.
Highlighting irrigation development, he said water from the Handri Neeva Sujala Sravanthi Project had already been supplied to 30 tanks in the Dhone constituency. He recalled that the project was initiated by former Chief Minister NT Rama Rao and is now helping improve agriculture in Rayalaseema.
The Chief Minister also stressed the importance of horticulture crops in increasing farmers’ income.
He said mango farmers were being supported with a subsidy of `4 per kilogram when prices fall and a 50 per cent subsidy on fruit protection covers.
Farmers using these covers are earning up to Rs 40,000 per acre due to better quality produce, said the Chief Minister Naidu.