PM begins agriculture review from AP, NFSM formally launched

Hyderabad, July 31 (UNI) Calling for preparation of decentralised district plans with convergence across departments to close yield gaps and increase farm livelihoods in three months, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today asked Andhra Pradesh to work with the RBI for financial inclusion of a majority of farmers without institutional credit.

Coinciding with the visit of the Prime Minister along with his cabinet colleagues P Chidambaram and Sharad Pawar and Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia, the Rs 5,000 crore National Food Security Mission (NFSM) was formally launched in the state reaffirming commitment to achieve four per cent growth in agriculture sector during the XIth Plan period.

A resolution adopted at the joint review meeting wanted the state to prepare project proposal of about Rs 400 crore by September for World Bank funding of post harvest management infrastructure in the state.

Dr Singh, who began his review of agriculture with states starting from Andhra Pradesh, wanted the state to accord priority for pastoralism and pisciculture as over 40 per cent of the agriculture sector in state would be rain-fed even after completion of the irrigation initiative.

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