Odisha set to seal borders during paddy procurement

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government on Tuesday said it will seal borders with the neighbouring States when it begins paddy procurement for the kharif season next month.The decision was taken during a review meeting chaired by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and attended by ministers and departmental secretaries.

The State plans to procure paddy at Rs 3,100 per quintal, fulfilling a promise made by the BJP before the elections. With the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for paddy set at Rs 2,300, the State will provide an additional Rs 800 per quintal as a bonus at government mandis, an official said.

Given the rising price of paddy in the State, the government is concerned about the potential influx of lower-priced paddy from neighbouring States such as Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and West Bengal, he added.To address this, the district magistrates have been instructed to deploy enforcement squads in border areas and implement 24-hour monitoring of highways using CCTV cameras.

The Chief Minister emphasised the need to prevent farmers from outside the State from selling their paddy in Odisha markets.The State has set an ambitious target to procure 1 crore tonnes of paddy this year, with the possibility of increasing that figure based on demand, the Chief Minister said and directed that the procurement system be streamlined and made more transparent for the benefit of farmers.

“Advised to take necessary measures to make paddy procurement system more simple, smooth and transparent for the benefit of farmers,” Majhi said.

Each minister will be assigned to oversee the procurement process in 2 to 3 districts, and there will be one authorised officer present at each mandi during grain purchases. Zones will be created with multiple paddy mandis, each supervised by a designated official.

Notably, 83.16 per cent of registered farmers in the State are small farmers. Majhi highlighted the importance of ensuring that these farmers can sell their paddy without issues and instructed officials to prioritise them during procurement.

Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari said paddy quality will now be assessed only once at the mandis, streamlining the process and reducing potential harassment of farmers over quality assessments.

The district collectors have been given the authority to extend the token deadlines for paddy procurement without needing to notify the State government, he added.Additionally, the government plans to construct godowns at mandis to facilitate proper storage of paddy, especially during rainy periods, allocating Rs 550 crore for the modernisation and development of these facilities.

Procurement will be overseen by officers from various departments, including supply, cooperatives, police and district administration, with the Panchayati Raj department also involved as necessary. All decisions regarding procurement tokens will be made by the district collector, officials said.