Amaravati, Sep 22 : Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu said on Monday that the state is exploring new markets for aquaculture products as the tariff imposed by the US has dealt a blow to the sector.

He told the Assembly that the state government is in talks with the Centre to explore new markets for aquaculture. "Alternatively, we will look to increase domestic consumption," he said.

Stating that aqua exports from Andhra Pradesh stand at Rs 21,000 crore, Naidu said that due to the policies of US President Donald Trump, the sector is facing a crisis.

Making a PowerPoint presentation in the Assembly on agriculture and allied sectors, the Chief Minister said that the state government is working on alternatives to protect aqua farmers.

The state government is providing electricity to registered aqua farmers at Rs 1.50 per unit, irrespective of zones. It is also in talks with companies to reduce the price of aqua feed by Rs 9 per kg.

"As part of developing the marine economy, we are also focusing on seaweed culture. This sector will provide large-scale employment and job opportunities for the youth. There will be a large-scale opportunity to earn income through seaweed," the CM said.

He assured the house that the government would make the state number one in aquaculture as well as agricultural products.

He told the legislators that the government is committed to the welfare of farmers and is making efforts to provide MSP to agricultural products. The government is seriously considering a proposal to provide value addition to agricultural products.

He advised the MLAs to visit agricultural fields starting from October, interact with farmers directly to know their problems, and explain to them the steps being taken by the state government to safeguard the interests of farmers and make the agriculture sector profitable.

Noting that Andhra Pradesh stands in second place in the usage of fertilisers and pesticides, he said drones can be used to minimise the usage of pesticides. Efforts are also being made to reduce cultivation costs using technology.

The Chief Minister said that farmers used urea as a booster dose due to floods, and the cultivation area also increased by an additional 1.16 lakh acres. He said 16.70 lakh tonnes of urea was allotted for the Kharif season, and the urea reserves in the state at present stand at 5.54 lakh tonnes.

Voicing concern that due to excess usage of urea, the soil health is getting affected, leading to pests, he reiterated that Rs 800 will be given as a subsidy for those farmers who reduce the usage of urea.

The Chief Minister said that the government remitted Rs 3,173 crore into the accounts of farmers under the Annadata Sukheebhava-PM Kisan scheme. In addition, Rs 50,000 compensation was announced per hectare to onion farmers who suffered a loss. The government also came to the rescue of mango, chilli, Cocoa, cotton and tobacco farmers. He said the government is focusing on food processing units to provide value addition to agricultural products.

Stating that the agricultural sector is a main revenue source by contributing 35 per cent to GSDP, the Chief Minister said priority will be given to agriculture and allied sectors, including horticulture. He said steps will be taken to increase the horticulture area up to 25 lakh hectares by 2029 to make Andhra Pradesh a horticulture hub.

/IANS