50,000 Farmers Expected as Telangana's Mega Rythu Mela Opens in Kodangal

Around 50,000 farmers are expected on the closing day of a three-day Mega Rythu Mela in Kodangal, Telangana, running November 7 to 9, with Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy inaugurating the event in his home constituency on November 7.

The mela will host roughly 150 exhibition stalls covering modern farming methods, advanced technologies, quality seeds, farm machinery and alternative crops — all pitched at one target: improving farmers' incomes. Agriculture minister Tummala Nageswara Rao announced the details on Wednesday.

A total of 26 government departments and affiliated organisations will participate. The list includes the agriculture and horticulture departments, Oilfed, PJTSAU, the animal husbandry department, WALAMTARI, CRIDA and Central government agencies.

Some 7,500 farmers from Vikarabad and Narayanpet districts are expected on the inaugural day alone. The crowd swells tenfold by November 9, when farmers from 10 neighbouring districts arrive and the Chief Minister addresses the gathering.

What can farmers actually see there?

The stalls will display agricultural inputs, new-generation chemicals, farm machinery, drones and government schemes. Drones on a government stall list may be the quiet headline here — visibility on what's available, and how schemes subsidise it, tends to matter more than the demos themselves.

Technical sessions will run alongside the exhibitions. Farmers can interact with agricultural scientists, experts and award-winning progressive farmers, with sessions focused on:

• Crop diversification
• Value-added products
• Market opportunities
• Sustainable farming practices

Special sessions will address the impact of El Nino on agriculture, precautionary measures and alternative cultivation strategies. Given how much weather volatility has reshaped planting decisions in recent seasons, that session may deserve a front-row seat.

Kit and machinery on offer

The Chief Minister will distribute agricultural equipment and machinery during the event. The distribution list includes:

• Custom hiring centres
• Pulse mills
• Oil extraction units
• Soil health cards
• Bio-resource input centres
• Drip irrigation systems

That's a tangible haul. Soil health cards and drip systems, in particular, are the kind of kit that shifts day-to-day input decisions rather than sitting in a display tent.

A day for women farmers

Day two turns the programme over to women farmers. Sessions will cover their contribution to agriculture and allied sectors, plus opportunities to raise their incomes through modern technologies. It's a structural nod, not a token one — allied sectors are where much of the household income action actually sits.

Tummala said the mela would let farmers interact directly with scientists, industry representatives and technology institutions to learn about innovations aimed at improving farm productivity and incomes. He appealed to farmers across the state to attend.

What does this change for farmers?

In practice, it compresses a season's worth of scattered enquiries into three days. A grower can compare seed options, quiz a PJTSAU scientist on El Nino precautions, inspect drip kit and register for a scheme at the same venue — and walk out with machinery distribution on the table.

Farmers in and around the 10 participating districts should watch for the November 9 closing address, where scheme announcements and further distributions typically land.