Agriculture Minister Kurasala Kannababu said here on Monday that various crops, mostly paddy, were damaged in over 8,300 hectares across the State due to rains in the last two days.
Mr. Kannababu, who inspected the paddy fields in East Godavari district, promised support to the farmers by procuring the damaged paddy (discolored paddy) by offering the Minimum Support Price (MSP).
Mr. Kannababu said: “The damage of the paddy crop has been estimated in over 7,453 hectares across the State due to the rains. In East Godavari district alone, over 2,200 hectares of paddy has been damaged”. Maize in 539 hectares and sesame in 270 hectares were damaged in the State.
Input subsidy
“Input subsidy of ₹54 crore was released on Monday, offering financial aid to the farmers who suffered crop loss during the kharif season,” said Mr. Kannababu.
The Minister directed Joint Director (Agriculture- East Godavari) V. T. Rama Rao and the field-level staff to speed up the paddy procurement.
“We are able to check the import of paddy from other States during the ongoing procurement season. Stringent action will be initiated against those do not offer MSP,” said Mr. Kannababu.