Telangana govt proposes to construct 'Kallams' across the State for farmers

The State government proposes to construct one lakh multi-purpose cement ‘Kallams’ (drying platforms) across the State for farmers to dry their agriculture produce, particularly grains.

These platforms will do away with the existing practice of farmers drying grains on the roads which often led to fatal accidents in the past.

The Cabinet Sub-Committee on Agriculture, which came up with the proposal to construct these drying platforms in every village covering 32 districts (barring Hyderabad), will place it before Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao for the final nod. The platforms will facilitate drying of grains by farmers before they are packed in gunny bags and sent to procurement centres.

The Sub-Committee, comprising Agriculture Minister Singireddy Niranjan Reddy, Finance Minister T Harish Rao, Power Minister G Jagadish Reddy, Panchayat Raj Minister Errabelli Dayakar Rao and Agriculture Principal Secretary B Janardhana Reddy, met on Thursday and decided to submit the proposal to the Chief



Minister for approval.

Janardhana Reddy told that the need for such pucca platforms was felt since huge quantities of grains were being harvested across the State at the same time, creating a severe shortage of open space in villages. 

“With mechanical harvesters being used these days, harvesting of crops in even 100 acres can be done in a single day and this forces farmers to dry the produce on the roads,” he said. He also pointed out that fragmentation of land holdings also increased the number of plots, thereby leaving no open space to dry the produce.

Harvesting is also not staggered like it used to be in the past where farmers had more open space to dry farm produce. “If all the farmers of a village take up harvesting on the same day when the hired harvester visits the village, there is invariably a shortage of space and the platforms to be built by the government will help them in such situations,” he said.