Avail govt subsidies, Collector tells farmers

Dharmavaram (Sri Sathya Sai district): Collector T S Chethan advised horticulture farmers to go for low investment crops which yield high profits. The Collector visited a mango farm and black berry farm where vegetables were planted as inter-crops including tomatoes and chillies and leafy vegetables.

He also visited horticulture plantations in Battalapalle. Horticulture officers Chandrasekhar and APMIP PD Sudarshan accompanied the Collector.

Speaking on the ocassion, Chethan advised the farmers to avail government subsidies and benefits for raising commercial crops as inter-crops. Horticulture farmer Venkateshwar Reddy told the Collector that he availed drip irrigation for raising inter-crops like tomato, drumstick and black berries. In view of water scarcity, he has adopted drip irrigation to make optimum utilisation of water resources.

Another farmer Dadasaheb told the Collector that he gave up groundnut cultivation as he had been incurring losses every year. He is now raising sweet lines plantation which is fetching him Rs 50,000 profit per acre annually.