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In a letter to Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Naidu said Andhra Pradesh stands fourth in coconut cultivation area with more than one lakh hectares and leads in the country with 16,000 nuts per hectare.
“I request the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare to provide central financial assistance of Rs 200 crore for integrated coconut development and strengthening of market infrastructure in Andhra Pradesh,” Naidu said in the letter.
Noting that the state produces more than 1,700 million walnuts annually, he said, farmers still face low prices, pest problems and inadequate market infrastructure.
He said that despite high productivity, lack of organized markets and processing facilities causes distress and unstable income among farmers.
The Chief Minister proposed a comprehensive program of ₹200 crore focusing on modernizing markets, setting up processing parks and introducing advanced support systems to strengthen coconut farming operations.
According to him, the program will enhance value addition, reduce losses, improve farm-gate prices and create employment for rural communities in coconut growing areas in Andhra Pradesh.
Naidu noted that farm-gate prices could increase from ₹15 per nut to ₹40, which would reduce damage caused by pests by about 25%.
He said the initiative would create about 15,000 rural jobs and make the southern state a national hub for value-added coconut and tender products.
Naidu requested the Central Government to provide assistance under appropriate schemes in line with doubling the income of farmers, self-reliant India and rural employment objectives.