Farm operations surpass last Vaanakalam’s records
Sowing operations have been completed in about 82.49 lakh acres covering nearly 70.7 per cent of the normal cultivation area of 1.16 crore acres for Vaanakalam (Kharif) season this year.
Hyderabad: With widespread rains and various water bodies brimming with water, crop cultivation in Telangana State has surpassed last year’s cultivation area as on date. Sowing operations have been completed in about 82.49 lakh acres covering nearly 70.7 per cent of the normal cultivation area of 1.16 crore acres for Vaanakalam (Kharif) season this year. During the corresponding period last year, the sowing operations were taken up in about 79 lakh acres.
Officials of the Agriculture department attributed the increased cultivation area to availability of adequate water in various water bodies apart from continuous downpour in the past fortnight. The the major reservoirs in the State were cumulatively holding around 566.73 TMC as on Monday this year, against 384.41 TMC on the same date last year. The State also recorded average rainfall of 474.3 mm since June 1 this year against the normal rainfall of 292.4 mm which is 62 per cent excess. In all, 31 of 33 districts in the State have received excess rainfall of more than 20 per cent.
Farmers are taking up sowing operations as the monsoon is active all over the State. Paddy nurseries are being raised under assured irrigation sources, even as sowing operations of rainfed crops like jowar, bajra, maize, ragi, pulses, groundnut, soybean, cotton and others are full swing. Measures have already been taken to make available required quantities of various crop seeds and fertilisers to the farmers for the ongoing Vanakalam 2021 season, a senior official from the Agriculture department told Telangana Today.
Cotton crop is being cultivated in about 48.77 lakh acres against normal cultivation area of 47.6 lakh acres. Paddy operations too have surpassed last year’s sowing activities as on date with farm operations taken up in 13.74 lakh acres against 10.2 lakh acres during last Vanakalam season. While normal cultivation for Vaanakalam area is 34 lakh acres, officials are expecting paddy cultivation in more than 50 lakh acres.
“As against normal cultivation area of 1.16 crore acres for the Vaanakalam season, we are anticipating cultivation of at least 1.35 crore acres during the current Vaanakalam season. Apart from availability of huge irrigation water, the climatic conditions have also been favourable for sowing operations. Keeping the experiences of previous years, farmers are expected to take up cultivation in a larger extent of land than targeted,” the official said.
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