Cyclone Asani: Paddy procurement gains momentum across Telangana

Hyderabad: Paddy procurement is being expedited in Telangana, with the officials kept on an alert over the impending unseasonal rains due to the impact of Cyclone Asani. The number of procurement centres have been scaled up to 5,774 where 11 lakh metric tonnes of paddy has been procured through 3,760 centres so far. About 11 […]

Hyderabad: Paddy procurement is being expedited in Telangana, with the officials kept on an alert over the impending unseasonal rains due to the impact of Cyclone Asani. The number of procurement centres have been scaled up to 5,774 where 11 lakh metric tonnes of paddy has been procured through 3,760 centres so far.

About 11 lakh metric tonnes of paddy worth Rs 2,121 crore has been procured from around 1.56 lakh farmers. Of this, around 10 lakh metric tonnes have been already shifted to the rice mills for paddy milling. The officials were directed to complete the procurement before the end of the ongoing Kharif (Vaanakalam) Marketing season 2021-22.

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To allay apprehensions of farmers over paddy procurement amidst rumours being spread over delayed procurement, inadequate storage facilities, lack of gunny bags and other material, Civil Supplies Minister Gangula Kamalakar released a white paper here on Wednesday. The State government would incurr loss of Rs 3,000 crore by procuring entire paddy yield from farmers and supplying raw rice to the union government.

“We acquired around 8.85 crore gunny bags in the State. Of this, about 2.5 crore bags were used for paddy procurement and the remaining 6.35 crore bags are adequate to procure nearly 25 lakh metric tonnes of paddy. Another 6 crore gunny bags are also being acquired to meet the demand for the remaining paddy,” the Minister said.

In the wake of Cyclone Asani, all the district collectors along with additional collectors and the officials as well as staff of Civil Supplies department have been kept on an alert. About 2.77 lakh tarpaulins, 11,523 weighing machines, 11,000 moisture meters and 4,958 paddy cleaners among others have been deployed at all the paddy procurement centres opened so far.

The officials have been instructed to provide all help to farmers for safeguarding their produce. Orders have been already issued to shift the procured paddy immediately to the rice mills or also take nearby storage spaces on lease.

The Minister said the entire department will be deployed to assist the farmers at the procurement centres. However, those who have any difficulty in paddy procurement can also contact the toll free numbers – 1800 425 00333 and 1965, for assistance.