Telangana: Paddy procurement falls short of targets amid declining arrivals

Despite the government's assurance to keep paddy procurement centres open until January, the arrivals in the market over the past week have averaged between 50,000 to 60,000 tonnes per day. This is significantly lower than expected. Private traders and millers have been active in the market, mainly focusing on fine varieties, which has further impacted the government's procurement efforts.

Hyderabad: The State Civil Supplies Corporation is facing challenges in its paddy procurement efforts, which were projected to cross 90 lakh metric tonnes during the Kharif marketing season. As of now, the actual procurement is yet to touch 40 lakh metric tonnes, with arrivals on a declining trend.

Despite the government’s assurance to keep paddy procurement centres open until January, the arrivals in the market over the past week have averaged between 50,000 to 60,000 tonnes per day. This is significantly lower than expected. Private traders and millers have been active in the market, mainly focusing on fine varieties, which has further impacted the government’s procurement efforts.

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Initially, there were plans to hire additional storage facilities to maintain stock levels in anticipation of heavy arrivals. However, this need did not arise as millers have been lifting the procured stocks for custom milling rice (CMR) operations. The paddy procured from farmers is being moved 100 percent to millers for CMR operations. The rice provided to the millers is stored under the joint monitoring of both the millers and the Corporation. Millers have expressed readiness to take any quantity for CMR.

The Corporation planned to hire godown space of 18 to 19 lakh metric tonnes for stocking rice to meet the state Public Distribution System (PDS) requirements and other welfare initiatives. This is crucial as the State’s godown requirement for paddy storage stands at 18 lakh metric tonnes.

Meeting the additional requirement from the State, the Food Corporation of India (FCI) will also be stocking over 22 lakh tonnes to meet the State’s needs.

With the paddy procurement close to 40 lakh metric tonnes. The declining trend in arrivals and the competition from private traders and millers pose challenges for the MSP operations. As the Corporation continues its efforts to secure and store the required quantities, the focus remains on ensuring that the needs of the State are met without compromising the quality and efficiency of the procurement process, officials said.