Andhra: AP has planned a Rayalaseema Horticulture Centre worth ₹1 lakh crore in Madanapalle.

TIRUPATI: In a path-breaking project of the Andhra Pradesh government, modern farming technologies, food processing, cold storage, and global market linkages will form the core of the proposed Rs 1 lakh crore Rayalaseema Horticulture Hub planned at Madanapalle in Annamayya district.

The project is aimed at giving a major boost to horticulture and creating an integrated ecosystem covering production, processing, storage, research, and marketing. The government plans to implement the programme, along with the completion of irrigation projects in the region. The foundation stone for the horticulture hub will be laid by Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on October 2 at Madanapalle.

The two leaders will also lay the foundation stone for the proposed Indian School of Agriculture (ISA), which will come up at Ramireddipalle in Nimmanapalle mandal. According to the state government, the Centre is expected to provide around Rs 40,000 crore in various forms under the Purvodaya scheme, while another Rs 60,000 crore is proposed to be mobilised through private investment.

Purvodaya is a strategic central government initiative focused on accelerating the all-round socio-economic development of Eastern India to turn the region into a key economic growth engine. The initiative presently covers Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha, and Andhra Pradesh. The proposed infrastructure at Madanapalle is expected to help farmers adopt modern micro-irrigation systems and gain access to processing and cold storage facilities. The government also plans to establish market linkages to help farmers add value to their produce and reach wider domestic and international markets. Andhra Pradesh is already among the leading states in the country in respect of horticultural products. It produces around 360 lakh metric tonnes of horticultural crops annually from 18.25 lakh hectares.