Agri dept’s storage units come handy in preserving harvest

TIRUCHY:  Agricultural Marketing department storage facilities are fast gaining ground among farmers. Crops harvested late, including paddy, groundnut and corn, are now being stored in the facilities. Meanwhile, the department would also issue permits to traders who transport black gram from fields to processing units following the harvest.

Despite bumper yields, farmers are facing trouble in getting proper prices in the market, for which they have decided to store their crops until the market situation improves and the lockdown ends. Following the conclusion of samba season, 1,019 metric tonnes of paddy have been kept in the storage units to be sold when there is an improvement in market prices.

A senior Agricultural Marketing department official in Tiruchy said, “Following the commencement of the lockdown, farmers are  in a fix. They are choosing to leave their harvest in storage units  till normalcy returns.” He added more farmers, especially from Lalgudi, have been inquiring with the department on keeping their harvest in storage facilities.

Nagarajan, a farmer from Lalgudi, said, “. We are finding it hard to find workers to shift the crops from our places to the storage units in regulatory markets. They are afraid to venture out of their homes  because of coronavirus.”

Sugumar, an Agricultural Marketing department official, stated with black gram cultivation having kicked off in the district, farmers and food processing unit operators are in a fix. Following a recent meeting, six pulse processing units in the district have came forward to procure and process black gram. The department would issue permits to vehicles transporting food grains.