Tourism Minister Muttamsetti Srinivasa Rao has said that the State government is committed to the welfare of farmers. Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy is keen on making agriculture profitable and taking steps in that direction, he said.
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Speaking at the district-level Agriculture Advisory Board meeting here on Monday, the Minister explained that Mr. Jagan won the appreciation of many States for the establishment of Rythu Bharosa Kendras (RBKs) at the Constituency and manda- levels. He said that 627 RBKs were being set up in the district. Already 80 of them were completed and they were providing fertilizers and quality seeds to the farmers.
He said that budget for agriculture was introduced after the YSR Congress Party government came to power in the State. Market yards were set up and remunerative prices being given to farmers for their produce. The farmers were enrolled in the e-crop system and insurance was being provided to them. He said that a seed processing plant was sanctioned at Sabbavaram in the district.
Soil testing labs were available in Visakhapatnam and Anakapalle and it was planned to set up one more at Narsipatnam. The issues related to agriculture would be taken to the notice of Agriculture Minister K. Kannababu and efforts would be made to solve them, he said. The YSRCP government has given ₹756 crore as rythu bharosa. He announced that the Agriculture Advisory meeting would hereafter be held in the third Friday of every month.
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District Collector A. Mallikarjuna asked the officials to discuss with him on the points raised by progressive farmers at the meeting.
Committee chairman Chikkala Ramachandra Rao said that efforts were being made to bring betel farmers, who lost their crop during the cyclone, under the purview of rythu bharosa.
Government Whip Budi Muthyala Naidu, MLAs G. Babu Rao (Payakaraopeta), K. Bhagyalakshmi(Paderu), Kannababu (Yelamanchili), T. Nagireddy (Gajuwaka), Chetti Phalguna (Araku), Vasupalli Ganesh Kumar (Visakhapatnam South), PGVR Naidu (Visakhapatnam West)VMRDA Chairperson A. Vijayanirmala, Joint Collector M. Venugopal Reddy, Director of Agriculture Leelavathi and officials of various departments participated.