K Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR), Telangana Chief Minister gave assurance to the farmers of Telangana during the press release that they don’t need to worry about the loss of paddy crops due to the unseasonal rains.
The state government will purchase wet paddy at the same price as normal paddy, the chief minister made it clear. He emphasized once more that the Telangana government's goal is to safeguard agriculture and share the struggles of farmers.
The Chief Minister instructed the Agriculture Department to research the policies that should be implemented in order to harvest paddy in the month of March despite the state's ongoing, unseasonably wet weather, unlike in the past, and to take the appropriate measures to raise awareness of this issue among the state's farmers.
In the meantime, the CM advised the farmers to delay harvesting for an additional three to four days due to the ongoing unseasonal rainfall.
Pointing toward the crop damage triggered by the recent rains, CM said that it is painful to know that the untimely rainfall and hailstorms have damaged crops. The government will provide Rs 10,000 compensation per acre to all the farmers whose crops were damaged. It doesn’t matter even if it becomes a burden on the State reserves. Also, the State government will purchase the entire paddy. There is no need for farmers to panic over the issue.
The state Secretariat held a high-level review meeting on the collection of wet paddy, procurement of paddy, measures to ensure early harvesting of paddy in the future, and activities to be followed by the Agriculture Department.
CM also instructed the agriculture officials to study the situation and submit a report during the Rabi season on the new practices to be adopted to minimize crop loss.
Last week, heavy rains hit Hyderabad and many districts of Telangana with thunderstorms, gusty winds, and lightning causing havoc.
