The Minister for Agriculture, Handlooms and Textiles Tummala Nageswara Rao has disclosed that a sanitary napkin-making unit would be established by the Telangana State Handloom Weavers’ Cooperative Society (TSCO) on its part for distributing in schools and colleges.
In a review meeting with the officials of Industries, Agriculture, Marketing, Handlooms and Textiles departments held here on Friday he directed the authorities to set up food processing units in each district to reduce losses by using soaked grain due to untimely rain to make bio-manure and bio-mass from damaged grain as well.
The meeting was attended by Principal Secretary Jayesh Ranjan, Managing Director of Telangana State Industrial Infrastructure Corporation Ltd E. Vishnu Vardhan Reddy, Director Handlooms and Textiles Alagu Varshini V.S., Director Horticulture K. Ashok Reddy, Director of Agricultural Marketing G. Lakshmi Bai, and Director of Industries G.S. Malsur.
He asked them to enter into an agreement with the Discoms so as to allow solar panels at the storage facilities (godowns) of marketing department and state warehousing corporations where they can get additional income over their requirements through sale of energy generated.
He asked them to chart out strategies for transforming Koheda fruit market into a fruit export centre; progress on this as well as plans for development of Khammam agricultural market and textile park at Buggapadu were also discussed which among other measures include establishing mills under rice milling policy that would benefit farmers within the state.
For fabric orders placed by government agencies TSCO had received orders worth ₹255 crore from March 11 this year alone with more expected in future informed him regarding government department’s restriction in buying fabric from private companies only through tenders after obtaining non-availability certificate from TSCO.
Weavers receive orders annually for 5.7 crores metre length of fabric, including Bathukamma sarees and the orders have started coming this year with 2.5 crore metre length of fabric excluding Bathukamma sarees already placed yet.
They also expect another 80 lakh meter of fabric. Modernization of units at a cost of ₹350 crore would improve quality of handloom products; he also directed to prepare proposal for power subsidy to power looms.
