Vijayawada: Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu urged the Centre to sanction Rs 200 crore to overhaul the state’s coconut farming and market infrastructure. In a letter to Union agriculture minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Naidu said Andhra Pradesh ranks fourth in terms of coconut cultivation area with over one lakh hectares and leads productivity in the country at 16,000 nuts per hectare.

“I request the ministry of agriculture and farmers welfare to kindly extend central financial assistance of Rs 200 crore to support integrated coconut development and strengthen market infrastructure in Andhra Pradesh,” said Naidu in the letter.

Noting that the state produces over 1,700 million nuts annually, he said, yet the farmers face low prices, pest issues, and inadequate market infrastructure. Despite high productivity, lack of organised markets and processing facilities causes distress among farmers and unstable incomes, he added.

The Chief Minister proposed a Rs 200-crore comprehensive programme focusing on modernising markets, establishing processing parks, and introducing advanced support systems to strengthen coconut farming operations.

According to him, the programme would enhance value addition, reduce losses, improve farm-gate prices, and generate employment for rural communities across coconut-growing belts in Andhra Pradesh.

Naidu mentioned that farm-gate prices could increase from Rs 15 per nut to Rs 40, with pest losses reduced by nearly 25 per cent. He added that the initiative would create around 15,000 rural jobs and make the southern state a national hub for value-added coconut and tender products. Naidu requested the union government to extend assistance under suitable schemes aligning with doubling farmers’ income, Atmanirbhar Bharat (self-reliant India), and rural employment objectives.