Telangana Paddy farmers feel chilli heat

Tall claims of govt fail to provide succour to farmers

​Hyderabad: Paddy farmers, a la the chilli farmers, are virtually forced to hit the streets going by the prevailing conditions at paddy purchase centres, which are plagued by shortage of gunny bags, lorries, lack of tarpaulins, lack of platforms to dry paddy.

The prevailing condition make a mockery of tall claims made by the state government to get the paddy purchased within 24 hours and disbursing the amount to farmers within 48 hours.

The farmers have been demanding crediting of their amount in their accounts in two or three days and provide adequate number of lorries to transport paddy to rice mills.

It may be recalled that recently a farmer died of cardiac arrest waiting endlessly for traders to buy paddy. The farmer is at the receiving end when there is bumper harvest or otherwise. He is putting a Herculean task to raise crops and even harder efforts to sell the harvested crops.

As the evening falls, the farmer is dreading the Rain God, who played truant and broke the back of the farmer earlier and now threatening to dampen the dry paddy in the market yards. The farmer is in tears whether there is rain or no rain.

A paddy purchase centre has been set up at Nagaram about 20 days ago in Yadadri-Bhongir district. The farmers accuse the government of locating it in a burial ground. The officials are postponing the purchase stating that there was shortage of lorries to transport the purchased paddy to rice mills.

Quoting the Indira Kranthi Patham personnel, the farmers stated that they would get their amount credited only after 10 days of making the sale. Their predecessors are yet to get their sale proceeds. Either to hire tarpaulins or pay for hamalis, farmers have to burn a hole in their pockets.

There were reports of paddy exposed to rain at purchase centers in Nalgonda, Yadadri-Bhongir and Suryapet districts, the farmers said lamenting that the government is not in a position to provide tarpaulins to the farmers.

There are 245 paddy purchasing centres in Nizamabad district and 172 in Kamareddy. Irregularities are alleged at many centres in weighing the paddy. The farmer is duped to the tune of two to three kilo for every quintal in the name of ‘Tarugu’.

The hamali charges are also breaking the back of the farmer.
The traders are also threatening the farmers to buy only A1 grade variety, but in practice they are buying the coarse variety of paddy.

The difference in weighing at the purchase centres and weighing the paddy along with the lorry is taxing the farmers.

Decrease in hamali charges by the government from Rs 11 a quintal to Rs 5.35 is burdening the farmer as the hamalis are charging anything between Rs 8 and Rs 11 from the farmers to make good the loss.

The additional burden on farmers in Nizamabad and Kamareddy districts was put at Rs 4.52 crore.
There was no change in the style of functioning of officials and traders even though a farmer Posayya of Janagoan village in Bibipur mandal of Kamareddy district died of a cardiac arrest while waiting for seven days for the traders to lift the paddy.

On account of the delay in the purchase of paddy, thousands of quintals of paddy was drenched in rainwater in Kamareddy district. The delay is as good as seven days to 10 days. On account of the delay, the purchase centers are flooded with paddy. There are only 300 lorries to transport the purchased paddy as against the required 600 lorries.

On account of mercury raising high, the hamalis are hesitating to load and unload paddy. At some purchase centres, there are lorries, but no adequate number of hamalis.

The farmers have been waiting for more than 15 days to sell paddy at purchase centres in Mancherial district. Because of inadequate amenities like polythene sheets, stray cattle and pigs are sometimes found savouring on dried paddy.

In Kadem mandal, the purchase centre at Pandavapur did not have space. Therefore, the farmers put their paddy in the adjoining forest area.

In all, 2,000 paddy bags remained with no transport facility at Jinnaram market, 1000 bags in Kadem market yard and 200 in Indanpalli for want of more lorries.

In Warangal urban district, huge heaps of paddy welcomed The Hans India correspondent at the paddy purchase centres at Gundlasingaram and Pegadapalli.

The personnel there threw off their hands out of helplessness in purchasing the paddy. There was shortage of tarpaulins at the two places. The farmers are worried over the snail’s pace of purchasing the paddy even though the civil supplies corporation chairman Peddi Sudarsan Reddy hailed from the district.