a day ago
Minister stresses tech-driven farming
Kurnool: Industries, Commerce, and Food Processing Minister TG Bharath directed agriculture officials to raise awareness among farmers about the effective use of drone technology in agriculture.
Speaking at Zilla Parishad general body meeting in Kurnool on Saturday, chaired by ZP Chairman Errabothula Papireddy, the Minister urged officials to expedite the formation of farmer groups to meet the target of deploying 35 drones, with only 17 sanctioned so far. He instructed mandal-level agricultural officers to educate farmers on drone spraying to boost productivity and efficiency.
The meeting addressed several key issues, including NTR health scheme. Responding to the complaints from Adoni MLA Parthasarathi about network hospitals charging patients, Bharath ordered the health department to establish a vigilance committee to ensure proper implementation. He also directed the District Medical and Health Officer (DMHO) to investigate high oxygen procurement costs in government hospitals and recommended adopting Comprehensive Maintenance Contracts (CMC) over Annual Maintenance Contracts (AMC) for critical equipment like ICU setups.
On sanitation and education, the Minister emphasised the need for a centralised, high-quality supply of bleaching powder State-wide to maintain hygiene standards. He instructed the District Education Officers (DEOs) of Kurnool and Nandyal to inspect school buildings over 20 years old and implement safety measures. Additionally, he sought details from irrigation officials on pending flood risk mitigation proposals along the Handri River, requesting a copy of the submitted plans.
District Collector P Ranjith Basha and Nandyal Collector G Rajakumari addressed local concerns, including counterfeit seeds in C Belagal mandal, horticulture crop expansion, cotton seed subsidies due to high rainfall, and health infrastructure upgrades in Adoni. The Collector announced that the Mega DSC exams would conclude by July 2, with results expected by July 15, facilitating teacher recruitment. He noted that the district's 10th-grade pass rate improved to 88.88% with virtual classrooms. Proposals for new KGBVs, BC hostels, and model schools have been submitted to the Central government.
