Warangal: Farmers caught in a vicious circle

Warangal: Sandwiched in the political game of the Centre and the State, farmers continue to wait for the paddy procurement to pick up. With rains lashing the region every now and then since they started harvesting, it's moist in every sense. It's an unenviable situation for the farmers – neither can they fight the government for minimum support price, nor could they stop untimely rains.

With the weather continuing to play truant, Ellaboina Raju, a farmer of Balwanthapuram under Duggondi mandal, who cultivated paddy in his two acres, was caught in two minds whether to harvest or to wait for a few more days. The untimely rains have also caused a huge damage to the crop. At some places, rainwater also caused sprouting even before the farmers harvested the crop and during the drying, he said.

Adding more to his woes was the prevailing uncertainty over the procurement of paddy by the government. With no paddy procurements centres (PPCs), some farmers who already harvested paddy resorted to distress sale to middlemen and rice millers. They sold their produce at a price of Rs 1,500 a quintal, while the MSP of paddy (common variety) is Rs 1,940 per quintal.

Despite the government's assertions on opening paddy procurement centres, the ground reality is something different. Although the government had assured to open all the PPCs by November 1, not even one-third of them were opened till date.

While the expected paddy yield is 3.15 lakh metric tonnes in Warangal district, the administration has opened 32 of 180 PPCs. In Hanumakonda district, the plan is to procure 3.61 lakh MT of paddy. But of the 150 PPCs, only 25 are functioning. In Mahabubabad district, four PPCs of the 231 are functioning. Here the estimation is to procure 2.50 lakh MTs.

Of the 165 PPCs planned in the Mulugu district through different agencies (Primary Agriculture Cooperative Societies (PACS)-98, Girijan Cooperative Corporation-39 and Indira Kranti Patham-28), 30 have started purchasing. Just five of the 165 PPCs have started purchasing paddy in Jayashankar-Bhupalpally district. The paddy target in this district is 1.65 MTs.

In all the districts, the officials say that the PPCs will be opened according to the local needs. Speaking to The Hans India, All India Kisan Federation (AIKF) State joint secretary Peddarapu Ramesh, a farmer himself, said, "Farmers were struck in a vicious game played by the Centre and the State. Instead of rescuing the farmers, the Centre and State were trying to shift the blame on to the other. It's nothing but a ploy to escape from the responsibilities. Their tussle is aiding the rice millers and middlemen to reap the harvest leaving farmers high and dry."