Telangana has recorded a 117% increase in gross irrigated area since 2014, when it was formed out of the bifurcation of combined Andhra Pradesh, till 2021-22, a report of the Socio-Economic Outlook of the state tabled in the assembly in the recently-concluded session said.
According to the report, the gross irrigated area went up from 62.48 lakh acres to 135 lakh acres with the creation of an additional new irrigation potential of 74.32 lakh acres in the last eight years. “This increase in area is mainly due to the planned investments in new irrigation projects and revitalisation of existing irrigation systems,” the report said.
Due to the increased irrigation potential, the gross sown area also increased from 131 lakh acres in 2014-15 to 198 lakh acres in 2021-22, an increase of 51%.
The report said the impact of improved irrigation can be gauged from the production of major crops. In 2014-15, the area cultivated under paddy was about 35 lakh acres and it increased by 180% to 98 lakh acres in 2021-22. This has resulted in an increase of paddy production from 45.7 lakh metric tonnes to nearly 202.2 lakh metric tonnes, a massive increase of 342%, during this period.
Similarly, the area covered by cotton crop also increased by 12% from 42 lakh acres to 47 lakh acres during this period. Cotton production increased from 18.85 lakh metric tonnes to 25.08 lakh metric tonnes, an increase of 33%, the report said.
As per the agriculture statistics 2020 of the Union ministry of agriculture and farmers’ welfare, Telangana stands in the third position in the production of cotton in the country with an output of 5.80 million bales.
The report further said Telangana emerged as the second largest supplier of paddy to Food Corporation of India (FCI), after Punjab, by procuring 77.46 lakh metric tonnes of paddy in 2018-19, 111.26 lakh metric tonnes in 2019-20, 141.09 lakh metric tonnes in 2020-21 and 119.05 lakh metric tonnes in 2021-22.
