After a gruelling field work since 2003, the Andhra Pradesh Micro Irrigation Project (APMIP) has bagged the national records for being number one in involving 1.79 lakh farmers and number three in covering 1.9 lakh hectares under its purview in the drought-prone Chittoor district, latest by 2018-19.
The APMIC is all set to rope in 25,000 more farmers and extend the acreage by 32,000 hectares for 2019-20. In order to achieve the targets, the project has entered into a tie-up with the field personnel of the Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA) and the Andhra Pradesh Drought Mitigation Programme (APDMP). In all, 100 field staff of the three wings would be working in about 600 villages of the district.
Orientation
APMIP project director Y. Vidya Shankar told The Hindu that the subject experts of micro-irrigation had conducted a series of orientation classes to the field staff of the three vital departments as to how they could interact with the farmers and convince them to join the mission of micro-irrigation, and avail themselves of the subsidies from the government, apart from thorough guidance on cultivation and reaping tremendous yields as well.
Mr. Vidya Shankar said that since 2003 more focus had been laid on horticulture crops such as groundnut, mango and other plantation crops. “This year, we want to equally focus on the agriculture crops such as paddy, maize, sugarcane and pulses, and floriculture as well.”
Three and half years of continuous drought had a telling effect on the agriculture scenario in the district. “As per the latest statistics, about 600 villages have been identified as ‘water stress’ areas, with groundwater table dipping below 20 metres and beyond. The severity is such that close to 60% of the borewells had gone dry. This year, we are expecting good rains. In the coming two months, the situation is expected to return to normal in the fields. We find it congenial to rope in more and more farmers into the ambit of micro-irrigation. So far, we could post good results in drip and sprinklers mode,” Mr. Vidya Shankar said.
The official maintained that about 40% of the sugarcane cultivation had been brought under micro-irrigation in Chittoor, catering to the farmers of Nagari, G.D. Nellore, Punganur and Srikalahasti constituencies. “We hope to further extend the acreage in the sugarcane belt by at least 20% this season,” he said.