Context: The Central government is considering a proposal to provide interest-free loans to tobacco farmers of Andhra Pradesh impacted by Cyclone Michaung.
Interest-free Loans for Andhra Tobacco Farmers
- Terms of loan: The interest-free loans, varying between ₹10,000 and ₹20,000, will be for a period of six months and will support replanting of tobacco.
- It will be provided to around 15,000 tobacco farmers in Andhra Pradesh who are impacted by cyclone Michaung (made a landfall in Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu on 5th december)
- The proposal is being forwarded by the Tobacco Board.
About Tobacco Board
- Establishment: The government of India under the Tobacco Board Act of 1975, established the Tobacco Board.
- Nodal ministry: Ministry of Commerce and Industry
- Headquarters: Guntur, Andhra Pradesh
- Functions:
- It acts as a facilitator to the tobacco growers, traders and exporters.
- It promotes all categories of tobacco and allied products, overseeing the production and distribution of the products for domestic as well as exports
- Regulating the Flue-cured Virginia (FCV) tobacco.
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About Tobacco
- Production: India is the world’s second-largest tobacco producer after China with around 800 million kg of tobacco produced annually.
- Gujarat is the highest producer with 45% of total production, followed by Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
- India’s Major exporting Destinations: Belgium, the UAE, Indonesia, Russia, Korea, the US, Yemen, Egypt, Singapore, Netherlands, Philippines, Turkey and Nepal.
- Cultivation: India has around 0.45 million hectares of area under tobacco cultivation accounting for (only 0.31% of net cultivated area in the country) and 10% of the total area globally.
- Conditions for growth:
- Temperature: It requires a temperature range between 20 and 30°C with a frost-free period of 90 to 120 days.
- Rainfall: A dry period is required for the ripening of the leaves. Excess rainfall results in thin, lightweight leaves.
- The planting season starts at around November-end to mid-January. The harvesting period is from March to June.
- Soil: The crop is sensitive to waterlogging and demands well-aerated and drained soils. The optimum pH ranges from 5 to 6.5. Flue-cured, light tobacco requires light sandy soil while Air-cured, dark tobacco is grown in silty loam to clay loam.
- Transplantation: Tobacco is sown on seed beds and is transplanted 40 to 60 days after sowing when the plants are about 15 cm tall.
Government Initiatives
- Tobacco Growers Welfare Scheme: A Tobacco Board’s Growers’ Welfare Fund has been approved by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry with a total corpus of Rs. 25 crore.
- Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (Remunerative Approaches for Agriculture and Allied Sectors Rejuvenation): It is a Crop Diversification Programme to encourage tobacco farmers in various states, to transition to alternative crops.
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News source: Livemint
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January 4, 2024