Telangana brings 2.74 lakh acres under oil palm cultivation since 2021-22

The Telangana government has brought 2.74 lakh acres under oil palm cultivation since 2021-22, with 88,282 farmers currently cultivating the crop across 3.20 lakh acres. Agriculture Minister Tummala Nageswara Rao said Telangana leads the country in area coverage.

Hyderabad: The Congress government has admitted that 2.74 lakh acres have been brought under oil palm cultivation since 2021-22 in the State.

During Question Hour in the Assembly on Wednesday, Agriculture Minister Tummala Nageswara Rao said currently 88,282 farmers were cultivating oil palm in 3.20 lakh acres in the State. Telangana stands first in area coverage in the country, he said.

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Since December 2023, oil palm cultivation has been expanded to 1.37 lakh acres. Against a target of 85,000 acres for the year 2026-27, planting has already been completed in 29,053 acres, he stated.

The oil palm companies allotted with factory zones procure Fresh Fruit Bunches (FFBs) from farmers at the price fixed by the government every month. The present price of oil palm FFBs is Rs 24,025 per tonne, the Minister said.

Currently, four oil palm processing mills are operating in the State. Of these, three mills are being operated by TG Oil Fed at Ashwaraopeta, Apparaopeta and Narmetta, and one mill is being operated by Godrej Agrovet Limited at Anjanapuram.

This apart, establishment of processing mills is under progress at Kallurugudem (Khammam), Incherla (Mulugu), Peddarathpally (Peddapally), Nayinipaka (Jayashankar Bhupalpally), Yacharam (Nalgonda) and Sankireddypally (Wanaparthy). These mills are expected to become operational during 2027, he added.

Works have been initiated for establishment of an oil palm refinery and a modern packaging unit at the processing mill of TG Oil Fed at Narmetta, Siddipet.