Keeping in view the rising demand for eggs and dependency on neighbouring Andhra Pradesh for the short-fall, the State Government has decided to increase the State’s egg production through proactive measures.
A decision to this effect was taken at a meeting held under the chairmanship of Chief Secretary Jugal Kishore Mohapatra at the State Secretariat recently. Mohapatra asked the Fisheries and Animal Resources Development Department to fix up yearly targets and work out detailed action plan to accomplish the same so that the target of one-crore egg production per day by 2020 can be smoothly reached.
It was revealed at the meeting that the State now produces 34 lakh eggs per day against requirement of 64 lakh. The annual per capita availability of egg in the State is higher than the national average.
In order to ramp up egg production, it was decided that the poultry farming would be treated at par with the agriculture. Accordingly restrictions for land use for the farming will be loosened and power tariff, VAT and entry tax would be lessened.
Mohapatra asked the Revenue SecretaryTaradatt to issue necessary instructions so that conversion of agricultural land to homestead would not be required for setting up layer poultry farms.
The meeting also decided to implement various promotional policies proactively for inviting more investment in poultry sector. In order to encourage more investment in the sector, it was recommended that the upper cap of `50 lakh should be revised to `75 lakh towards Capital Investment Subsidy.
The revised subsidy limit will be applicable for the new layer farms as well as for expansion of existing layer farms. Fiscal Incentive will be valid for a period of two years, 2014-15 and 2015-16. The graduates in Agriculture and allied disciplines would also be given capital investment subsidy for poultry farming. Among others, Finance Secretary Upendra Nath Behera, Agriculture Secretary Rajesh Verma and Fisheries and Animal Resources Secretary Bishnupada Sethi were present.