The Gazetteers Department

All the agricultural activities in the State, prior to the formation of the Zilla Parishad, were in charge of Agriculture department under the Director of Agriculture, Maharashtra State, Poona. With the inception of Chandrapur Zilla Parishad, agricultural activities in the district were divided into two sectors, viz., the State sector and the District sector. The Agriculture department of the Zilla Parishad in the District sector is headed by the Agricultural Development Officer while the State sector has the Director of Agriculture as its head. Though the Agricultural Development Officer is responsible to the Chief Executive Officer of the Zilla Parishad in administrative matters, the advice of the Director of Agriculture prevails in technical matters. The Agricultural Development Officer carries out the agricultural development programme as per the directions of the Agriculture department in the State sector. He is assisted in his work by District Agricultural Officer, District Campaign Officer, Agricultural Officers, Agricultural Supervisors, Agricultural Assistants and other necessary staff:.

Schemes such as town compost, sugarcane development, cotton extension, taluka seed farms, experimental and research farms, soil conservation and gram sevak training have been retained under the State sector while those relating to kharif and rabi campaigns, paddy pilot, horticultural development, construction of taluka godowns, air compressor blasting and tractor ploughing, rural compost, fertiliser distribution, plant protection and appliances on 50 per cent subsidy, green manuring, intensive cultivation of food-crops and pulses, distribution and stocking of seed, vegetable cultivation and distribution of cement, iron and steel have been transferred to the Zilla Parishad.

A brief account of the schemes falling in the District sector is given in Chapter-14.

Agricultural Schemes under State Sector.

The following is a brief description of the schemes in the State sector.

(i) Scheme for Development of Load Manurial Resources,.- This scheme includes four sub-schemes, viz., town compost, rural compost, green manuring and hand flush latrines, the last three being operated by the Zilla Parishad, Chandrapur. The object of the scheme is to induce such local bodies as municipal committees, cantonment boards and bigger village panchayats with papulation of 5,000 and above to start the work of compost scheme from night soil and other organic town waste.

(ii) Hybrid seed production programme.-This scheme was started in the district in 1966. Its object is to increase food production by distributing and producing hybrid seeds like hybrid maize, hybrid jowar, etc. During 1966-67 rabi season, commercial hybrid jowar and hybrid maize were taken on 105 acres and 118 acres, respectively. Government have now permitted to take hybrid seed production programme on cultivators' fields. Accordingly two panchayat samitis have been entrusted with this programme. The area to be brought under commercial hybrid jowar and maize in 1967-68 has been set at 50,000 and 3,500 acres, respectively.

(iii) Taluka seed farms.-There are nine taluka seed multiplication farms in the district. The object of the scheme is to multiply the foundation seed on the taluka seed farms and distribute the same to the progressive cultivators. These farms are under the charge of an Agricultural Officer who is assisted in his work by nine Agricultural Supervisors, six Agricultural Assistants and other necessary staff.

(iv) Soil Conservation.-Soil conservation activities in the district are under the charge of the Divisional Soil Conservation Officer, Chandrapur who is assisted in his work by five Sub-Divisional Soil Conservation Officers, five Agricultural Officers, 26 Agricultural Supervisors and other necessary staff. The district is divided into five sub-divisions, viz., Warora, Rajura, Chandrapur, Brahmapuri and Gadhchiroli.

Soil conservation by contour bunding and by terracing of paddy land is a plan scheme. The object of the scheme is the preservation, improvement and prevention or erosion of son. improvement of water-supply, introduction of drain farming method, improvement in method of cultivation, bringing waste and fallow land under cultivation, eradication of perennial or other kinds of wood or vegetation which is likely to be injurious or prone to interfere with the cultivation.

Gadhchiroli and Brahmapuri, sub-divisions in particular are meant for terracing work, i.e., compartmental paddy bunding work to convert open fields into paddy compartments. In other sub-divisions both technical graded bunding and other terracing work is being adopted.

(v) Air compressor and blasting scheme.-This scheme was initiated in the district in 1963-64. The object of the scheme is to deepen the wells on the cultivators' fields for irrigation purposes. The district has been allotted six air compressor units.

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