No free power in TS for paddy cultivators this Rabi

Hyderabad, Nov 19: The power-starved Telangana government is said to have taken a decision not to supply free power to farmers who grow paddy with the help of pump sets during the coming Rabi season that is to begin from the November last week, sources in the Agriculture Department said. The sources said Telangana government has ordered the officials in the Agriculture Department to initiate an extensive campaign across the villages in the state to build awareness among farmers on the severe power crisis. As per the instructions, the officials are to explain to the farmers on the financial burden the state government could face if they cultivated paddy during the Rabi season. The officials are to encourage farmers to raise dry crops like millets and pulses instead of paddy. If the farmers decide to go for paddy cultivation, the state will have to spend Rs 5000 per pump set towards power subsidy and that could be a huge burden to the state exchequer, the sources said. The demand for power is likely to increase from the present 125 million units to 130 mu if the farmers switch on the 20 lakh pump sets during the Rabi season for paddy cultivation, the source explained. It has come to the government's notice that farmers had installed an additional two lakh pump sets illegally. Paddy cultivation needs nearly 15 to 20 mu per day during the Rabi season, as crops need more water from mid-February onward with temperatures rising. The source said the increase in power consumption could put a heavy financial burden on the government. It may be recalled that Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao had recently urged the Telangana farmers to go for dry crop harvesting instead of paddy as the state government was unable to meet the ever-growing demand for power. The chief minister had urged the farmers to cooperate with the government.