Oil palm crop will withstand unseasonal rain, hailstorm: Ponnam Prabhakar

Says government offering Rs 42,000 subsidy per acre cultivation for four consecutive years

Siddipet: BC Welfare and Transport Minister Ponnam Prabhakar said that the cultivation of oil palm will help keep the monkeys away from the fields besides helping in tackling unseasonal rain and hailstorm.

Addressing the farmers during an awareness programme on the need to take up oil palm cultivation in Husnabad on Friday, Prabhakar said that the farmers in the district have suffered huge losses due to unseasonal rain this summer. In particular, he said that the paddy farmers and mango farmers suffered losses.

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The Minister said that the oil palm crop will withstand unseasonal rain and hailstorm and monkeys will never invade the crop.

He said that the government was offering Rs 42,000 subsidy per acre cultivation for four consecutive years. Prabhakar said that the farmers can earn Rs 60,000 to Rs 1.5 lakh per year on each acre then onwards. He said that the government will procure the oil palm crop in Husnabad, avoiding any inconvenience to the farmers.