Minister for Health Eatala Rajender said that Karimnagar district would emerge as the ‘Seed bowl of Telangana’ and also ‘Rice bowl of Telangana’ thanks to the availability of Kaleshwaram lift irrigation project and SRSP waters.
Mr. Rajender, along with Minister for BC Welfare and Civil Supplies Gangula Kamalakar, elected representatives and the district officials conducted a review meeting on the khariff action plan and the utilisation of SRSP and KLIP waters, here on Wednesday.
In a brief chat with presspersons, Mr Rajender said that 63 per cent of the agricultural lands in the district would cultivate paddy because of its location in the command area and another major portion would be allocated for cotton cultivation. Cultivation of maize would not be encouraged during the rainy season because of fewer yields during the period. Instead, the farmers would be advised to go for the redgram and other pulses, he said and added that they would take a final decision on the cropping pattern in the district after Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao holds a review meeting in Hyderabad on Thursday.
All the irrigation tanks in the district would be filled with SRSP and KLIP waters, Mr. Rajender said. Besides, water would be stored in the SRSP flood flow canal throughout the year. He also said that pending works of Thotapalli and Gouravelli reservoirs would be completed, which will provide irrigation to 77,000 acres by the next crop season.
Rajya Sabha member V Lakshmikantha Rao, MLC Naradasu Laxman Rao, legislators Rasamayi Balakishan, Sunke Ravishankar, V Satish Babu, ZP chairperson K Vijaya, Mayor Y Shekhar Rao and others were also present.