Himanshu Shukla, District Collector, SPSR Nellore, attending the Collectors Conference.
Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday (December 18) lauded SPSR Nellore District Collector Himanshu Shukla’s concept of ‘Champion Farmers’, calling it an innovative initiative and a good experiment. He congratulated Mr. Himanshu Shukla for designing this program to directly benefit the farmers by connecting all the departments comprehensively.
On the second day of the collector’s conference held under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister at the Secretariat in Amaravati, Mr. Himanshu Shukla presented the details of the ‘Champion Farmers’ programme, explained the water supply, crop patterns and measures taken to increase the income of the farmers.
“The Champion Farmers program was launched to bring comprehensive reforms in the agricultural sector of the district. Although the cultivated area has decreased in recent years, the situation has changed from 2024. This year, there is a 75 TMC water storage at the 100 meter level in the Somasila Reservoir.”
“Under these circumstances, the main objective of the ‘Champion Farmers’ program is to redirect farmers to alternative crops. This program also addresses issues such as shortage of agricultural labourers, lack of farm mechanization, excessive use of fertilizers and pesticides, lack of market linkages and lack of investment in food processing and value addition,” he said.
One ‘champion farmer’ has been identified in each village across the 727 panchayats of the district to act as a role model and ambassador for that village, the Collector said, adding that these champion farmers will be trained to use the latest agricultural techniques and continuously guided by local Village Agricultural Assistants (VAAs) for the next few years.
The Chief Minister praised Mr. Himanshu Shukla for designing a program for effective utilization of human resources. He said, “Self-help groups should be formed through ‘Champion Farmers’ or converted into MSMEs (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises). There is a need to extend these policies to horticultural crops as well, not just seasonal crops.”
“The purpose of programs like ‘Rythanna Mee Kosam’ is also to provide ultimate benefit to the farmers,” he said and advised collectors from all districts to create awareness about the government’s pro-farmer policies through Rythu Seva Kendra (RSKs) and Swarna Andhra Vision Action Plan Units.
“All measures should be taken to make farm mechanization clusters easily accessible to farmers and to reduce farm costs and maximize their income,” the CM suggested.
Published – 18 Dec 2025 20:18 IST
