Farmers in Kamareddy fall at the feet of cops over paddy procurement delay

In Kamareddy, farmers staged a protest over delays in paddy procurement, with some falling at the feet of police to demand action. Officials had refused to procure stocks citing quality issues. A district team later claimed the issue was resolved

Kamareddy: Farmers continue to face severe hardships in paddy procurement across the state this season as well. At the Paddy Procurement Centre (PPC) in Nasrullabad, distressed farmers fell at the feet of police personnel, pleading with them to intervene and direct procurement officials to lift their stocks.

The farmers, frustrated by the delay, threatened to end their lives if the rice mills refused to procure their produce. They staged a protest at the Bommadevrapally crossroads on Saturday, squatting on the road and raising slogans.

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A total of 211 farmers were registered at the Bommadevrapally PPC. Of these, 31 farmers were allotted to Giridhar Industries for the sale of 2,099 quintals of paddy, while another 2,000 quintals were tagged to Suguna Rice Mill.

However, officials refused to procure the stocks meant for Suguna Rice Mill, citing poor quality and failure to meet the Fair Average Quality (FAQ) norms.

Angered by the decision, farmers staged a protest demanding that officials direct the mill to purchase their paddy. Officials, however, maintained that only clean stocks meeting FAQ standards and verified by Agricultural Extension Officers (AEOs) would be accepted.

A team of district officials later inspected the Bommadevrapally PPC and claimed that the issue had been resolved. They stated that procurement was continuing smoothly, with 11,931 metric tonnes of paddy already procured in the district, of which 11,201 metric tonnes had been shifted to the mills.