Irrigation Minister T. Harish Rao said 30 new agricultural market yards were being set up in the State in addition to the 150 existing ones.
Responding to a query in the Legislative Council here on Wednesday about a proposal to set up an agricultural market yard at Samsthan Narayanpur in Bhongir, the Minister said there were certain criteria for it. The market should generate ₹15 lakh income per year, there should not be any other market yard within 15 km radius and it should generate a fee of ₹5 lakh. He, however, said a sub-market yard at Samsthan Narayanpur has been notified at that place under the agricultural market committee. He disclosed that a separate market yard for lime would come up at Nakrekal in eight acres of land at a cost of ₹2 crore, a sweet lime market in 12 acres under SLBC project in Nalgonda and ‘Dondakaya’ market in Devarakonda highway with a cost of ₹60 lakh.
The Minister said in view of good red gram yield - 4.8 lakh tonnes- for this time in the State, the government was setting up 70 purchase centres through four State and Central agencies.
Over 60 centres were already set up and 1.32 lakh tonnes of red gram was purchased at a minimum support price of ₹5,050 per quintal. He asked the legislators to go to the market yards to see whether the farmers were getting the MSP.
Meanwhile, Mr. Harish Rao said 11 irrigation projects, to be taken up at a cost of ₹7,669 crore, were included in the Prime Minister Krishi Sinchai Yojana and in this, the Centre would extend assistance of ₹1,196 crore while ₹537 crore was already released. The rest of the amount would be released through NABARD.
