AMARAVATI, 22 May 2025: Andhra Pradesh is pushing for a 15% growth rate in agriculture, horticulture, animal husbandry, fisheries, and other allied agricultural sectors, announced Agriculture Minister Kinjarapu Atchannaidu in a review of kharif preparedness via video conference at the Secretariat.
The Minister urged officials to focus on quality paddy cultivation, natural farming, and crop rotation, while ensuring the availability of seeds, fertilizers, and micro-irrigation support through Rythu Seva Kendras (Farmer Service Centres).
Atchannaidu emphasized the need to reduce fertilizer usage, promote organic agriculture, and shift farmers toward horticultural and commercial crops. He also called for the integration of artificial intelligence in agriculture, agritech tools, and precision farming to improve yield quality, reduce cultivation costs, and expand agriculture marketing networks.
Officials were instructed to prevent the sale of fake seeds and fertilizers, enhance traceability, certification, and farm-to-fork transparency, and provide soil health reports. Mechanisation applications must be cleared in 4-5 days, and subsidies under the farm mechanisation scheme must be delivered efficiently through bank loans.
All tenant farmers are to be issued CCRS cards to ensure access to agri-finance and bank credit. The Minister urged full implementation of natural farming in pilot regions and its expansion to other districts.
B. Rajashekar, Special Chief Secretary (Agriculture), reiterated the government’s vision to develop the primary sector through tech-driven, climate-smart agriculture and stressed the creation of custom apps using AI for crop planning and yield optimisation.
Keywords: agriculture growth, horticulture development, agritech, artificial intelligence in farming, sustainable farming, natural farming, crop rotation, seed subsidy, farm mechanisation, farmer loans, micro-irrigation, precision farming, organic agriculture, traceability, agri marketing, CCRS cards, Rythu Seva Kendras, soil testing, AI in agriculture, Andhra Pradesh farming, kharif season planning.
Image credit: apseeds.ap.gov.in
