Centre refusing to procure rice from Telangana: Gangula Kamalakar

Karimnagar: BC Welfare and Civil Supplies Minister Gangula Kamalakar slammed the Centre for showing discrimination in procuring boiled rice from Telangana. The Union government which purchased 1.13 crore metric tonnes of boiled rice from Punjab in the Yasangi season, was refusing to procure the same rice from Telangana, he pointed out. Though it was the […]

Karimnagar: BC Welfare and Civil Supplies Minister Gangula Kamalakar slammed the Centre for showing discrimination in procuring boiled rice from Telangana. The Union government which purchased 1.13 crore metric tonnes of boiled rice from Punjab in the Yasangi season, was refusing to procure the same rice from Telangana, he pointed out.

Though it was the responsibility of the Union government, the latter was refusing to purchase the rice. “Isn’t Telangana a part of India? He asked,” addressing a press conference here on Tuesday.

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Before starting the season, the Central government usually enters a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with States about the procurement of rice.

The agreement for the 2020-21 Yasangi season was entered on September 17, 2020. The sowing of crops for the season was completed in November 2020. However, in January 2021, the Union government had announced its decision not to purchase boiled rice by violating constitutional norms.

The State government procured 92.33 lakh metric tonnes of paddy from farmers and kept it in rice mills for custom milling. About 62 lakh metric tonnes of rice is going to be generated. However, the Union government was ready to purchase only 25 lakh metric tonnes. Who would purchase the remaining 37 lakh metric tonnes? He questioned.

On other hand, paddy is cultivated in 55 lakh acres across the State in the present Kharif season and 1.40 crore metric tonnes yield was expected. Of that, FCI is willing to purchase only 60 lakh metric tonnes. What about the remaining 80 lakh metric tonnes? He asked

Since agriculture was the subject of the Central government, the State had nothing to do with it. Everything including procurement, exportation and fixing of price was in the hands of the central.

He along with Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister KT Rama Rao recently met Union Minister Piyush Goyal, FCI CMD requesting them to procure the rice. However, the Central Minister refused to purchase rice.

Similar kind of situation developed in 2001. The then Prime Minister Vajpayee responded positively and purchased 7 crore metric tonnes of paddy at that time.

Kamalakar requested Union Minister G Kishan Reddy and BJP State president Bandi Sanjay Kumar to take steps to procure the entire crop by convincing the central government for the interest of farmers.

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