Fight over paddy procurement: Modi's move stumps TRS government

Hyderabad: "Farmers First. Will chase the Union government and will haunt them till they come with a proper policy on rice procurement and lift all the bumper crop. They will now see the real KCR who is never scared of anyone. We will once again show the Centre what an agitation means. We are 'Udyama' Party," thundered the TRS leaders at Maha Dharna on Thursday.

Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao also said that they would join hands with the farmers who were fighting for repealing of farm laws for over one year. The sudden announcement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi that the government was repealing the contentious farm laws has pushed the TRS into a state of confusion and the party is not clear on how to react. For public consumption they may claim that it was the Maha Dharna which made the Centre shiver and now it will be inevitable for the Centre to buy every grain produced in the State.

The Modi government has resolved the central issue but the farmers in the State are still in confusion as to what would happen to their produce. The government market yards are moving at a snail's pace and have hardly purchased any paddy so far.

Sources say that the Centre may also agree to the demand for announcement of procurement policy. Experts say one of the possibilities is that the Centre may give full freedom to the State Government to fix MSP based on the yield every year.

If this happens the State Government will be in a fix as the onus of buying 100% of the produce will be on the State Government. The Centre will only buy the quantity it wants for food security and defence purposes at the MSP fixed by the State Government.

The responsibility of storing the produce will also fall on the State Government. Similarly, the upgradation of technology for fortified rice kernels and export opportunities will be the responsibility of the State Government.

The State BJP leaders pointed out that the Centre has been asking Telangana to cause necessary changes and encourage food industries to cover the problem for the past three years. The State Government had also agreed to the same and assured to discontinue the supply of parboiled rice to the FCI in future but did nothing and was blaming the Centre.