BHUBANESWAR: With the kharif paddy procurement season having ended in Odisha on March 31, the state government on Thursday said it has procured 62.92 lakh metric tonne (MT) of paddy, which is 18% more than last year’s figure.
Sources in the state food supplies and consumer welfare (FS&CW) department said 53.31 lakh MT paddy was procured by March 31 in 2020.
Despite opposition’s allegations that many genuine farmers could not sell their paddy owing to discrepancies in the token system and irregularities at the mandis, the FS&CW department claimed that more than 11.92 lakh farmers had sold their paddy this year. During the last kharif, about 9.56 lakh farmers had sold their paddy at the mandis.
The state government has transferred Rs 11,756 crore to the accounts of farmers so far, while last year 9,676 crore was transferred, the department said.
Among the major procuring districts, Bargarh recorded 13% growth in procurement compared to last year. The growth of procurement in other districts was 22% in Balangir, 15% in Sambalpur, 40% in Koraput, 14% in Kalahandi, 28% in Nabarangpur and 27% in Nuapada. Paddy procurement was done through 2,881 primary agriculture cooperative societies (PACS).
Despite the state government’s claim of procuring 18% more paddy than the previous year, more than two lakh registered farmers are yet to sell their paddy. This year, a total of 14.72 lakh farmers had registered their names to sell paddy at the state-sponsored mandis.
The opposition alleged that paddy is still lying in mandis across the state. Both the BJP and Congress urged the state government to extend the procurement date by 15 more days for the benefit of the farmers.
BJP krushak morcha president Pradip Purohit said, “Despite the government’s announcement in the assembly and chief minister Naveen Patnaik’s promise of procuring paddy from genuine farmers, it was still lying in mandis across the state. The government must extend the procurement period.”
Senior Congress leader Suresh Routray also criticised the state government for the alleged irregularities in paddy procurement and urged it to procure paddy from the genuine registered farmers.
Responding to the oppositions’ allegations, BJD leader Amar Prasad Satpathy said the state government has procured 18% more paddy than last year.
While the alleged irregularities in paddy procurement disrupted the assembly proceedings during the ongoing budget session, the opposition likely to raise the issue when the house reassembles on Saturday.