Govt efforts catapult Telangana into top orbit
Hyderabad: The consistent efforts of the State government to improve irrigation facilities through construction of new projects and improving the old irrigation infrastructure has yielded rich dividends as is evident in the overall gross irrigated area in Telangana zooming up by 119 per cent from 62.48 lakh acres in 2014-15 to 136.86 lakh acres in 2020-21. With nearly half of the State’s workforce employed in agriculture sector, it continues to be central to all strategies for planned socio-economic development of the State.
According to the Socio Economic Outlook 2022 published by the State government, the overall cropping area and irrigated area have increased significantly. The Gross Sown Area (GSA) increased from 1.31 crore acres in 2014-15 to 2.1 crore acres in 2020-21, bringing in more than 79 lakh acres freshly under cultivation. This increase has been attributed to the sustained investment in irrigation projects and paddy procurement by the government, which made it possible for farmers to cultivate paddy in both seasons of the year.
With the construction of various irrigation projects, lifts, restoration of minor irrigation tanks and check dams, production of major crops increased significantly. Between 2015-16 and 2020-21, paddy production increased by a mind-bogglin 378 per cent, catapulting Telangana into a major paddy production State. Cotton production too increased by 61 per cent in the same period.
Further, the Gross Value Added (GVA) of Agriculture and allied sectors at current prices to the State economy has a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 13.94 per cent from Rs 76,123 crore in 2014-15 to Rs 1.89 lakh crore in 2021-22. During the same period, these sectors recorded a CAGR of 9.55 per cent at all India level.
Of this, livestock accounted for 49.73 per cent in 2021-22, recording a significant growth. This was followed by agriculture with 44.66 per cent, fishing and aquaculture at 3.23 per cent and forestry and logging sector at 2.38 per cent. Between 2012 to 2019, the livestock population in Telangana increased from 26.7 million to 32.6 million with a growth of 22.21 per cent. Among the major States in India, Telangana is second to West Bengal in growth of livestock population during the same period.
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