Agriculture Minister Somireddy Chandramohan Reddy led the admirers of the father of Indian peasant movement N.G. Ranga in paying glowing tributes to the latter on his 117th birth anniversary here on Tuesday.
Speaking on the occasion, the Minister said the State government was striving to improve the income of farmers. Setting up of a mega seed park by the Iowa State University with which a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) was entered into, would go a long way in increasing the seed production leading to improved crop yield, he said. The Minister announced release of 20 tmcft of the Krishna water to Prakasam district and another 40 tmcft to Guntur district from the Nagarjunasagar right bank canal to raise rabi crop.
The major reservoirs brimming with water had proved wrong the YSRCP which had been attributing drought to Mr. Naidu being at the helm. “It is not enough if Andhra Pradesh experiences bountiful rains. Rain god should shower his blessings on the upper riparian states of Karnataka and Maharashtra for our ryots to benefit.” Diversion of the Godavari waters from Pattiseema had ensured irrigation water not only to Krishna delta but also to Rayalaseema and Prakasam district, he added. A three-member ministerial committee would come out with an action plan to address the woes of social forestry farmers, he said, adding that the government would ensure immediate payment of ₹12 crore out of ₹16 crore owed to farmers by Sirpur Kagasnagar paper mill.
Former State Minister Galla Aruna, daughter of former MP P. Rajagopal Naidu, a close associate of disciple of Ranga, recalled that it was the parliamentarian who had championed the cause of farmers.