Chandrababu puts AP on war footing

Amaravati: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has directed ollectors and officials to prepare for the worsening impact of El Nino, with priority on preventing drinking water and fodder shortages, protecting crops and containing any rise in essential commodity prices.

Addressing the first day of the Collectors’ Conference at the Secretariat on Thursday, Chandrababu said the government must ensure that neither farmers nor consumers bear the burden of the weather crisis. He ordered officials to create awareness among farmers about El Nino, assess future crop demand and promote less water-intensive crops such as pulses, onions and millets, besides encouraging multi-cropping and activating Rythu Bazaars.

He also stressed crop insurance awareness, directing collectors to prepare lists of insured crops and ensure farmers cultivate the crops covered by their policies so that they do not lose insurance benefits in the event of damage.

Water resources special chief secretary Shashi Bhushan Kumar said Andhra Pradesh had received only 206.7 mm rainfall against the normal 457.9 mm between June 1 and September 7, a 54.9 per cent deficit. Reservoir storage stood at 638 TMC, or 49 per cent, against 1,023 TMC during the same period last year.

The CM directed that available water be prioritised for drinking needs of people and livestock, followed by fodder and life-saving irrigation for perennial horticultural crops. New paddy cultivation should be prohibited outside the Godavari Delta, while semi-dry crops should depend on farm ponds and micro-irrigation. Pattiseema has so far diverted 39.5 TMC of Godavari water to the Krishna Delta. Chandrababu said the government would take strict action against canal water theft.

The CM set a two-and-half years target for completing 36 priority irrigation projects to create 17 lakh acres of new command area and stabilise 33.4 lakh acres. He said early completion would be incentivised and ordered collectors to personally resolve land acquisition and rehabilitation issues. He also directed departments to prepare plans for uninterrupted drinking water supply through the coming summer, fill tanks wherever possible and transport water from nearby sources to deficit areas. Jaladhara works, including trench excavation, should continue without interruption, while departments should coordinate groundwater recharge and tank-filling measures.

Agriculture special chief secretary B Rajasekhar said El Nino’s impact could intensify by February 2027. Kharif cultivation stood at 22.82 lakh hectares, 74 per cent of normal, with a shift towards less water-intensive crops. An additional Rs 90 crore was sanctioned for seed contingency, while crop insurance coverage expanded to 16.92 lakh hectares.

Chandrababu said he would review the El Nino situation every week and undertake field visits, directing ministers, collectors and public representatives to remain active on the ground and ensure that the crisis does not translate into losses for farmers or consumers.

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The Hans India