Tribal Welfare Minister Ravela Kishore Babu has said that steps have been taken to popularise the A.P Girijan Cooperative Corporation’s coffee powder in overseas markets at a cost of nearly Rs.500 crore.
On top of the department’s agenda is increasing the area under cultivation of coffee beans from one lakh to three lakh acres in the coming years.
The underlying objective is to double a tribal family’s annual income from coffee cultivation to Rs. 2 lakh.
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Addressing media persons after reviewing his department’s activities here on Friday, Mr. Kishore Babu said the coffee grown in the agency areas of Andhra Pradesh was widely acclaimed but its business potential remained untapped to a large extent.
The government has therefore taken up its marketing aggressively.
The Minister said petrol bunks were sanctioned for tribal folks in 11 agency areas and 326 tribal people were appointed dealers under the Public Distribution System (PDS). These measures were aimed at empowering them economically.
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Roads were being laid at an estimated cost of Rs. 250 crore in the agency areas for improving connectivity to the plains.
Mr. Kishore Babu said in the review meeting earlier that a sum of Rs.1500 crore was spent on tribal welfare in 2015-16 and it went up to Rs.3000 crore in the current financial year. Due emphasis was laid on improving the skills of the tribal communities, he added.
Principal Secretary (Tribal Welfare) R.P. Sisodia, Director of Tribal Welfare M. Padma and Additional Director V. China Veerabhadrudu were among those present.
Action plan with over Rs.500 crore outlay prepared to popularise it in overseas markets