The problem of paddy procurement within the state snowballed right into a political slugfest with the opposition BJP holding a sit in protest on the intervening evening of Thursday and Friday in Sambalpur and accusing the ruling BJD of ignoring farmers’ welfare and hampering paddy procurement within the state.
The problem comes amid the state authorities’s tussle with the Centre over the latter’s choice to cap parboiled rice procurement from the state to 50 %.
A scuffle broke out on the protest web site amongst BJP employees and the police following which, 50 employees of the saffron celebration had been detained and launched later, officers mentioned.
State BJP leaders allege that the BJD authorities has misled farmers with its centralised token system, with many farmers unable to promote their produce. The BJD nonetheless, assured that the crop of “genuine” farmers could be procured.
Following the Food Corporation of India’s (FCI’s) choice to cap procurement, the BJD had threatened a stir if the choice was not retracted inside seven days.
Rajya Sabha MP and BJP in-charge of Odisha, Bijaypal Singh Tomar mentioned, “Due to the token system, many farmers are still waiting for their turn. They are forced to sell their produce below the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of Rs 1,868, as the procurement is stalled at various government-run yards.”
“The government has been claiming that this year, they have procured 22 per cent more paddy than last year. But the reality is totally opposite. Food supplies minister Ranendra Pratap Swain had promised that criminal cases will be filed if paddy is procured below the MSP at any place. But no cases are being filed anywhere,” BJP MP from Bargarh, Suresh Pujari, alleged.
BJD spokesperson Shreemayee Mishra hit out on the allegations saying the state BJP was representing the pursuits of “middle-men”.
“When paddy procurement has happened in such huge scale benefiting farmers, some middle-men (dalals) have caught hold of Odisha BJP, and they are advocating for them. People of Odisha know that Odisha BJP has always been advocating for middle-men (Dalals),” Mishra mentioned.
“Further, in order to divert the attention from the farmers’ agitation going on in Delhi, the Odisha BJP is unnecessarily creating nuisance, which the people of Odisha have very well understood,” she added.
Amid the political back-and-forth, farmers, whose produce is but to be bought, have began an evening vigil at yards their wares from theft.
Ashok Pradhan, a farmer chief in western Odisha, mentioned the centralized tokens of most farmers have expired and that they now await its renewal because the produce stays unsold. “Unlike other years, this year luckily there was no pest infestation or natural calamity, which is why the harvest was good. However, there have been a lot of issues pertaining to procurement, forcing farmers to sell below MSP in open yards,” Pradhan mentioned.
“First, the government did not revise its ceiling of paddy procurement of 19 quintals for every acre of irrigated land and 13 quintals for every acre of non-irrigated land. As a result, thousands of farmers were left with unsold paddy, which they had to sell at half the price of MSP. Then for most, the centralised token system has meant a long wait, adding to their woes,” Pradhan added.
Meanwhile, the state authorities on Friday additionally suspended 15 staff of main agricultural societies (PACS) and dismissed a knowledge entry operator from service on expenses of irregularities in paddy procurement. The suspensions had been ordered in 4 districts — Sambalpur, Balangir, Boudh and Keonjhar.
On the opposite hand, a delegation of BJD MPs interacted with Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Piyush Goyal by means of video convention on Friday demanding an early decision on the problem of the cap on rice procurement.
Earlier this week, Swain additionally wrote to Goyal apprising him in regards to the pending subsidy claims for paddy procurement and FCI’s choice over parboiled rice.
“As all resources including the sanctioned limit of bank finances have been exhausted by OSCSC [Odisha State Civil Supplies Corporation Limited], the pending subsidy may be released urgently as further paddy procurement from farmers will be severely affected,” he had written.
Swain additionally acknowledged that FCI’s choice could have “far reaching adverse consequences for the state”. The estimated surplus to be evacuated by FCI within the present Marketing session is within the vary of 30 lakh MT, Swain knowledgeable.
