The Telangana government has drawn up a three-phase contingency plan to shield farmers from the impact of El Niño, Agriculture Minister Tummala Nageswara Rao announced on Monday, 13 July following a high-level review meeting held at ICRISAT, Hyderabad. The plan phases its response around three trigger dates — 15 July, 30 July, and 15 August — calibrated to how long monsoon rains remain delayed across the state's 33 districts.

What the Three-Phase Plan Covers

The contingency framework was finalised after Minister Tummala held a comprehensive review with scientists from the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Professor Jayashankar Telangana Agricultural University, Indian Institute of Oilseeds Research (IIOR), Indian Institute of Millets Research (IIMR), and the Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture (CRIDA), along with senior officials from agriculture and allied sectors.

Scientists presented reports on drought-tolerant crop varieties and field-level management measures for already-cultivated crops facing dry-spell stress. The minister directed that every scientific recommendation be communicated to farmers at the field level and implemented by district authorities without delay.

Seed Reserves Linked to Rainfall Triggers

The Director of Agriculture outlined seed requirement estimates tied directly to the delay in monsoon onset. If rains are delayed until 15 July, the state will need 16.30 lakh quintals of seeds. A delay until 30 July reduces the requirement to 13.82 lakh quintals, and if drought-like conditions persist until 15 August, the need drops further to 12.70 lakh quintals. Steps have already been taken to ensure advance availability of seeds across all three scenarios.

As of the latest report, 13 districts have recorded normal rainfall while 20 districts are facing a rainfall deficit — a distribution that underscores the uneven monsoon pattern this season.

Dynamic District-Specific Response Ordered

Minister Tummala directed the adoption of a Dynamic District-Specific Response (DSR) approach, mandating scientific tools including real-time rainfall monitoring, weather-based agricultural advisories, soil moisture monitoring, crop growth assessment, weather hazard analysis, alternative crop action planning, and crop diversification strategies.

District collectors, agricultural officers, and scientists in rain-deficient districts were instructed to jointly review conditions and act immediately. The minister emphasised that El Niño must be addressed scientifically, not through generic state-wide responses.

Weekly Agro-Weather Bulletin to Guide Farmers

A key outcome of the review is the launch of a comprehensive weekly Agro-Weather Bulletin, to be released every week until the end of August in coordination with the IMD, Irrigation Department, Ground Water Department, Power Department, Agriculture Department, and Horticulture Department.

The bulletin will cover rainfall data by mandal, week-ahead and month-ahead weather forecasts, dry-spell probabilities, temperature ranges, soil moisture and groundwater status, irrigation water availability, power supply conditions, crop health updates, and weather forecasts for catchment areas of irrigation projects. It will be disseminated to farmers through farmer forums, village panchayats, agricultural extension officers, WhatsApp groups, social media, digital platforms, and local media.

The Ground Water Department was separately directed to map groundwater availability by mandal and prepare a district-level water usage plan. With the monsoon season still unfolding, the state's response framework will be tested in the weeks ahead.