Guntur’s tenant farmers reap success as Krishna recedes

With land in the catchment area leased out for as little as ₹500 an acre, farmers harvest a bounty in quick growing, popular vegetables

June 17, 2017 07:14 pm | Updated 09:18 pm IST - PULICHINTALA

A tenant farmer with his produce near Kollur village.

A tenant farmer with his produce near Kollur village.

Officially, the land was acquired for an irrigation project; the farmers were evacuated from the 2.5 lakh square km catchment area, compensated and resettled in new homes almost a decade ago.

And ₹1850 crore Pulichintala or KL Rao Sagar multipurpose irrigation project on the Krishna, to control floods and irrigate 13 lakh acres in West Godavari, Krishna, Guntur and Prakasam districts, was formally inaugurated by former chief minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy in 2013.

Unoffcially however, a couple of hundred farmers, who owned tracts in the project area, are farming and leasing out this fertile land to tenant farmers as the river recedes during the lean season every year.

The fleeting window of opportunity for the farmers has meant that this fertile land is available for lease at as little as ₹500 an acre

Generous yields

Bhimanna (name changed), a 45-year-old tenant farmer from Bodhanam village in the submersion zone is a happy man as he is assured of a minimum income of over ₹50,000 from each acre of land on lease each season.

“It’s almost a sure shot profit for us as we mostly go for vegetables which are in high demand. The additional expense, other than ₹500 lease amount, is on tilling, seeds and fertiliser, and that is not much, ” he said. The farmers also help tenants on sourcing water, choice of crops and other concerns. The fact that the region is just about 80 km from bustling Vijayawada ensures a ready market.

Though this activity is illegal, both the farmers and tenants are the happy with the win-win situation with most of the arable land in the catchment area still used for agriculture. Farmers take up quick-growing vegetables such as sweet corn, leafy vegetables, lady’s fingers, ridge-gourd etc. which have good demand.

“I’m happy with the ₹10,000 or so income from my 20-acre land here. In addition, we have free supply of vegetables from tenants,” says Kethavaram, a farmer, (name changed on request). He has invested the official compensation from the government in a small kirana shop near Guntur.

The government, as part of the Rehabilitation and Resettlement Package, had paid compensation to the original land owners and built permanent houses for them in Guntur and other districts.

Common arrangement

Other than Bodhanam, villages in the catchment area such as Chityala Tanda, Kollur, Kethavaram and villages in Bellamkonda mandal are known for such arrangements between farmers and tenants.

Narasaiah (name changed) a 60-year-old farmer from Kethavaram says there are several reasons why tenants prefer to take land on lease in the submersion zone.

“First, it is cheaper at rates far below the ₹20,000 to ₹30,000 per acre in other regions with similar fertility of soil. Most tenants go for two crops and many are known to have realised close to ₹1 lakh from each acre. They also feel safe as their investment starts to pay off within a couple of months,” he says.

The construction of Andhra Pradesh’s new capital, Amaravati in over 34,000 acres has also pushed up demand for land in the Pulichintala catchment area.

Capital impact

The State government’s Capital Region Development Authority (CRDA), has acquired over 30,000 acres in the Amaravati region, including huge stretches of agricultural land, for development. The government is paying about ₹30,000 as annual rent for the acquired land and no farming activity is allowed in the entire region. Most of the land in the region, used earlier to cultivate vegetables, is thus out of bounds.

With local farmers, more so tenant farmers now bereft of land for cultivation, the abundant Pulichintala catchment has come in handy over the past three years. And the former land owners of Pulichintala have seized the opportunity, said Vatte Siva Reddy, former sarpanch of Bodanam village.

“Despite several drawbacks like inundation, flash floods and poor connectivity in the region, the land is preferred as it is a great opportunity for most of the agricultural labour and tenant farmers who do not have any skills other than cultivation,” Mr. Siva Reddy said.

The area is also utilised by cattle and sheep rearing communities who find fodder abundantly available through the year. The government is aware of the farm activity in the region but has turned a blind eye as it concerns the livelihood of a few hundred people. “The officials concerned must be aware but they are too busy to meddle with the livelihood support of these tenant farmers etc. Moreover, it’s meeting the market demand for vegetables,” says a government official.

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