Damaged produce will be procured from farmers at Minimum Support Price by Andhra Pradesh government, says Guntur Collector

The government is in the process of enumerating crop damage and all farmers will be given suitable compensation, assures Collector

Collector M. Venugopal Reddy on Tuesday said that the agriculture department is in the process of enumerating damage caused to paddy and other crops in the recent heavy rains caused by Cyclone Mandous and assured that all farmers would get suitable compensation.

“Paddy was damaged in many villages in the district. Initial estimations reveal that over 6,000 acres have been inundated and standing crop has been affected,” he said after conducting an inspection of rain-affected villages in the district.

A farmer at Takkellapadu village informed the Collector that his paddy harvested from 12 acres of land was ready for sale but was damaged at the last minute in the sudden rains. The Collector assured him that the government would procure even the discoloured and wet paddy by paying Minimum Support Price (MSP).

The Collector instructed officials to shift the damaged and discoloured paddy and other produce to the nearest RBKs for procurement by the government.

Meanwhile, TDP leader and former MLA Dhulipalla Narendra requested the Collector at Takkellapadu to supply seeds at subsidised prices to farmers those whose crops were damaged in the cyclone. The Collector said that the government would provide seeds to the farmers for the next crop.