Hyderabad: The Telangana Agriculture Department has planned to complete the Yasangi crop survey within the deadline set by the Centre. To meet this target, it will engage private surveyors and village volunteers across the state.
Officials said the Yasangi crop survey would be completed in 45 days. However, if the department relied only on existing Agriculture Extension Officers (AEOs), the process would take nearly 90 days.
Across the state, there are 10,621 villages with 194.69 lakh survey numbers. Of these, 9,795 villages have village maps covering 174.36 lakh survey numbers. Therefore, authorities will assign surveys in these mapped villages to private surveyors and volunteers.
In the remaining 826 villages with podu lands, AEOs will conduct the crop survey. Since volunteers will belong to the same villages, they can capture photos of 150 to 200 survey numbers daily. As a result, officials expect faster completion and improved accuracy.
Yasangi crop survey to involve local youth volunteers
The Centre allocated ₹30.42 crore for the crop survey. Earlier, during the Vanakalam season, the survey cost ₹2.93 crore. Consequently, the department will use the remaining funds to pay ₹7 per photograph to private surveyors and volunteers.
Each volunteer can earn between ₹1,000 and ₹1,500 per day. If they work for 10 days, they can submit complete crop details of their villages. Additionally, the government plans to provide four to five days of training before deployment.
Recently, Central government advisor Rajeev Chawla reviewed progress with officials from the Agriculture Department. He directed them to complete the digital survey within the stipulated timeframe.
Although senior officials initially expressed differing views, they later consulted AEOs on feasibility. The officers suggested involving private surveyors and local volunteers to ensure 100 per cent accuracy and extend benefits to every farmer.
Following these consultations, the department issued orders two days ago to recruit capable local youth. Meanwhile, model farmers demanded that authorities assign them responsibility for the survey, citing their field knowledge and prior experience.