In MP & Chhattisgarh, paddy purchase gets a poll boost

Chandigarh: After a sluggish beginning in Uttar Pradesh, paddy procurement for the federal food security programme has gained momentum in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh after the completion of the assembly elections. A higher procurement than last year is on the cards in the two central states where pre poll announcements of incentives enticed more farmers to sell to the government agencies.

The government procurement of paddy was affected by populist announcements in the poll-bound states but the arrival smoothened after the votes were cast. “The procurement had risen after polling had completed in Chhattisgarh and at present the arrivals are better than last year,” a senior official of Markfed, the main procurement agency, said. The official maintained that around 24.9 lakh tonnes of paddy has been procured till Tuesday compared to 20.91 lakh tonnes during corresponding period in the previous year.

In its pre-poll promises Congress has announced to pay Rs 750 per quintal over MSP to farmers in the state and it is likely to boost arrival in the coming weeks. Around 47.8 lakh tonnes of paddy was procured in Chhattisgarh in 2017. The arrival is estimated at 70 lakh tonnes for the current year. A farmer is allowed to sell 15 quintals of paddy to government agencies for an acre of cultivated land in Chhattisgarh. “Although arrival picked up in recent days the total tally may miss the target for the current year as drought hit crops in some areas,” an official of Chhatisgarh Mandi Board said.