Agriculture and Allied Activities: Trends in Output
Sown Area
As a result of the government’s efforts and focus, overall cropping area and irrigated area have increased significantly, the Gross Sown Area (GSA) has significantly increased from 131 lakh acres in 2014-15 to 210 lakh acres in 2020-21. During this period, more than 79 lakh acres were brought under cultivation. This increase can be attributed to the sustained investment in irrigation projects and paddy procurement by the Government, which has made it possible for farmers to cultivate paddy in both seasons of the year.
Paddy, Cotton, Maize and Red Gram are the major crops grown in Telangana. Cumulatively, the area under these crops constitutes nearly 85% of the total area under cultivation. Currently, cultivated area under Paddy (50%) and Cotton (28%) constitutes 78% of the total.
In 2014-15, total area cultivated under Paddy was around 35 lakh acres and by the end of 2020-21, it increased nearly 197% to 104 lakh acres, The total area under cotton cultivation increased by 38% from 42 lakh acres to 58 1 lakh acres. There was a significant decline in the coverage of Maize from 12. 5% of overall gross area sown in Vanakalam 0 of the gross area sown in 2020-21 Vanakalam.
Production of major crops
The improvement in cropping area led to the overall agriculture production in the state which increased by 52% from 232 lakh MT in 2014-15 to 353 lakh MT in 2020-21. The 3 major crops grown in Telangana by production are Paddy Cotton- and Maize, These three crops together constitute nearly 75% of total produce in 2020.
As per the agriculture statistics 2020 of Ministry ofAgriculture and Farmer Welfare, Gol, Telangana stands at 2nd for cotton production (with an output of 6.83 million bales) and at 3 position in Maize production (with an output of 3 Million tonnes). However, looking at the growth rate of production of pulses between 2018-19 and 2019-20, Telangana stood 4th at the national level. As compared to the national growth rate of 4.3%, Telangana’s growth rate was 20.49% points higher.
Paddy (Rice)
The scientific name of Paddy (Rice)is Oryza Sativa.
Paddy is the major crop in the State. It is cultivated in 26% of the Gross cropped area. It is cultivated extensively during Kharif and Rabiseasons.
The crop duration of rice is 120 days/ 4 months.
Rice is the major cultivated cereal crop in the World.
Rice is cultivated in the largest area in India.
It is a tropical crop. Clayey loam is well suited to the raising of paddy crops.
Rice is mainly cultivated in the districts of 1. Nalgonda 2.Suryapet 3.Karimnagar 4.Peddapalli 5.Nizamabad 6.Jayashankar Bhupalpally 7. Mulugu 8. Wanaparthy
Wheat
Wheat is mainly grown in Tropical and SubTropical zones.
Wheat is the second major cultivated and produced food crop after Rice in India.
The Climate of Telangana is not suitable for Wheat. So it is very less cultivated in the state. It is a rabi crop. It is cultivated in some areas of Adilabad, Medak and Nizamabad districts.
Adilabad is the top most district in terms of productivity, production and area of Wheat in Telangana.
The largest Wheat producing State of India- Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh
The State with highest yield of Wheat- Punjab
The Largest Wheat producing Country in the World-China
Maize
It is a tropical crop. Maize producing districts of Telangana- Karimnagar, Peddapalli, Mahabubnagar, Gadwal, Nizamabad, Kamareddy, Medak.
The States that ranks first in terms of area of cultivation of maize – 1.Karnataka 2. Madhya Pradesh 3. Maharashtra
The Largest maize producing States of India – Karnataka, Maharashtra.
The states with highest yield of maize- Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand.
Sorghum (Jowar)
It is also known as the Great Millet.
Jowar can be cultivated on a variety of soil types such as black soils, clayey loam soils and sand soils. In India it is considered as a semi arid crop
Sorghum ís said to be the Poor man’s food in India. Jowar is cultivated in about 83,401 hectares inTelangana.
Jowar is highly cultivated in Mahabubnagar district.
The district that registered highest yield of Jowar is- Karimnagar
Jowar is very much connected to the traditions of Telangana. In some areas, it is used as Talambralu in marriages.
The largest Jowar producing State in India- Maharashtra, Karnataka
Oil Seeds
Largest cultivated districts of Oil Seeds in Telangana- Wanaparthy, Gadwal, Nagarkurnool, Nazamah Mahabubnagar, Kamareddy, Adilabad, Nirmal.
District with largest cultivated area and highest production- Mahabubnagar
District with highest yield- Khammam
The largest Oil seeds producing State of India – Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra.
The largest Oil seeds producing Country in the World- U.S.A., China, Brazil, India
Groundnut
ICAR- Groundnut Research Institute- Junagadh (Gujarat)
Largest cultivated districts of Groundnut- Mahabubnagar, Wanaparthy, Jogulamba Gadwal, Nagarkurno Janagaon, Warangal Rural, Jayshankar Bhupalapally, Mulugu, Nalgonda, Suryapet
The largest Groundnut producing State of India- Gujarat, Rajasthan
The largest Groundnut Producing Country in the World-China
The Country with largest cultivated area of Groundnut in the World- India
Sesame (Gingelly)
Largest cultivated districts of Sesame in Telangana- Peddapalli, Jagtial, Karimnagar, Kamareddy, Vikarabad, Rangareddy
District with largest cultivated area and highest production – Adilabad
District with highest yield – Karimnagar
It is a Rabi crop in South India.
The largest Sesame producing States of India – 1.Rajasthan 2. Haryana. 3. Madhya Pradesh
Safflower Seeds (Kusuma)
Largest cultivated districts of Safflower Seeds in Telangana- Sangareddy, Medak, Nizamabad, Kamareddy. Vikarabad, Rangareddy
District with highest production and productivity (Yield) -Nizamabad
District with largest cultivated area of Safflower – Medak
Sunflower Seeds
Largest cultivated districts of Sunflower- Nizamabad, Kamareddy, Medak, Sangareddy, Siddipet, Nagarkurnool, Wanaparthy, Gadwal, Mahabubnagar
District with largest area of cultivation, highest production and productivity- Medak
The largest Sunflower producing State of India – Karnataka, Haryana
Castor Beans
Largest cultivated districts of Cąstor beans- Mahabubnagar, Wanaparthy, Gadwal, Nagarkurnool, Nalgonda, Suryapet, Rangareddy, Vikarabad
District with largest area of cultivation, highest production and productivity-Khammam
Castor oil is mainly used as lubricant.
The largest Castor beans producing State of India- Gujarat
The largest Castor beans producing Country in the World- India
Coconut
Coconut tree, for its benefits to mankind is called as Kalpavriksha’. The only district ofTelangana that cultivates Coconut is- Khammam.
The State with largest cultivated area of Coconut- Kerala
The State with highest production and productivity of Coconut- Tamilnadu.
The largest Coconut producing Country in the World- Indonesia
Commercial Crops
Crops that are mainly cultivated for commercial purposes and profits are called Commercial Crops.
Important Commercial Crops – Cotton, Tobacco, Sugarcane, Jute
Cotton
It is also known as White Gold or King of Fibers. Cotton is measured in Bales. 1 Bale- 170 kg
Cotton is the most important commercial crop in India because it serves as the backbone for the development of the textile industry.
Telangana occupies 3rd place in the annual production of long staple cotton in India.
Cotton is primarily cultivated in the districts of Nirmal, Adilabad, Nalgonda, Warangal rural, Mahabubabad, Warangal Urban, Jayashankar Bhupalapally, Janagaon.
Tobacco
Tobacco was introduced in India in A.D 1508 by the Portuguese.
It is also measured in Bales. It is a Rabi crop.
Tobacco is primarily cultivated in the districts of Jogulamba Gadwal, Khammam, Nizamabad, Nirmal.
District with largest cultivating area of Tobacco – Mahabubnagar
District with highest productivity of Tobacco – Medak, Nalgonda
District with highest production – Khammam
Sugarcane
Sugarcane is largely cultivated in the districts of Medak, Sangareddy, Nizamabad, Kamareddy, Bhadradri Kothagudem, Khammam
Crop duration- 12 months. It is a tropical crop.
District with largest cultivated area and highest production – Medak
District with highest productivity – Nalgonda
Oil palm cultivation
Oil palm cultivation assumes significance for augmenting the indigenous availability of edible oil as it is the highest oil yielding perennial crop. Oil palm cultivation Oil palm cultivation assumes significance for augmenting the indigenous availability of edible oil as it is the highest oil yielding perennial crop.
The consumption of edible oil in India is at 22 Million MTs per annum with a per capita consumption of 16 kg per person whereas the production is only 7 million MTs. The deficit of 15 Million MTs of edible oil is being met through imports from Indonesia and Malaysia spending huge foreign exchange. Out of the total edible oil imports, Palm oil accounts to 60% i.e., 9-10 Million MTs of the total imports worth of Rs.60,000 to Rs.70,000 crores per annum. At present, Oil Palm cultivation is taken up in 3.30 lakh Ha (8.25 lakh acres) with an annual Fresh Fruit Bunches (FFB) production of 1 6.85 Lakh MT and Crude Palm Oil(CPO) production of 2.81 Lakh MTs in India. To attain self-sufficiency under oil palm in India, an additional area of28 lakh Ha (70 lakh acres) is required.
Telangana Stands 6 in Oil palm area with 21,382 Ha (53,455 acres), 1st in productivity (8 MT of FFB per acre) and 1st in Oil Extraction Rate (OER) with 19.22 % (2020-21) in the country.
The State production of Crude Palm Oil is around 0.45 Lakh MT against the requirement of 3.66 Lakh MT. Considering the potentiality for Oil Palm cultivation in Telangana, the state government is planning to take up 20 lakh acres under Oil Palm in a mission mode as part of crop diversification and has notified 26 districts for oil palm cultivation and during 2022-23, state government is planning to cover 1.00 lakh ha (2.5 lakh acres) with an outlay of Rs.471.93 crores (Gol share: Rs.283.16 crores & State share: Rs. l88.77 crores) and rest of the area in the subsequent years. Around 11 Oil processing units are operating in the state at present. To augment the Oil Palm cultivation in the state, the Government of Telangana is providing a subsidy of Rs. 26,000 per acre to oil palm farmers in the first year, Rs. 5000 per acre each in second, third and fourth year as a crop investment incentive and also can avail assistance on Micro Drip Irrigation (at Rs. 23,000 Hectare).
