Odisha targets 10 mt food grain output in kharif season

The state government has set food grain production target of 10.1 million tonne (mt) in the kharif, 2015. This year's target includes 9.51 mt of cereals and 0.587 mt of pulses.

The cereals include 8.24 mt of rice, 1.09 mt of maize, 0.162 mt of ragi. Similarly, pulses production target comprises 0.19 mt of arhar, 0.15 mt of mung and 0.176 mt of biri.

As per the kharif campaign 2015, cereals will be cultivated on about 4.106 million hectare (ha) of land with a productivity ratio of 2,316 kg per ha. This includes rice cultivation on 3.5 million ha with yield rate of 2,355 kg per ha, maize on 0.4 million ha with productivity quotient of 2,755 kg per ha and ragi on 0.18 million ha with yield rate of 902 kg per ha.

Similarly, it is targeted to cultivate pulses on 0.965 million ha with productivity ratio of 609 kg per ha.

The kharif sowing area include 0.473 million ha of oilseeds, 0.171 million ha of fibres per bales, 0.351 million ha of vegetables and 0.10 million ha of spices.

In the last kharif season, the food grains production in Odisha was about 10 million tonne, as per the second advance estimate.

"A comprehensive target for production of 10.1 million tonne of food grains, including 8.2 million tonne of rice, has been fixed for kharif 2015 with emphasis on increase of area under maize to 0.395 million ha in upland areas considering the situation of deficient rainfall in Kharif", chief secretary G C Pati wrote to all the district collectors. It is forecast that the monsoon seasonal rainfall is likely to be 93 per cent of the Long Period Average.

It is estimated that the crop loans to the tune of Rs 5,500 crore will be provided to the farmers during the kharif by the cooperative sector against Rs 4,386.82 crore disbursement achieved in the corresponding period of the last year. This represented an increase of 25.37 per cent.

The fertiliser requirement for all the crops is pegged at 0.478 mt of nutrients at a consumption rate of 78 kilogram of nutrient (NPK) per hectare.

It may be noted that the state was conferred with 'Krishi Karman Award" for last three years for highest growth rate in food grains production.