Paddy procurement: 2 Odisha officials suspended over ‘irregularity’, ‘dereliction of duty’

Two officials were placed under suspension over alleged irregularity and dereliction of duty at a paddy procurement centre (Mandi) in Machhagaon under Balikuda block in Jagatsinghpur district, on Sunday.

The District Collector took action after receiving multiple grievances from local farmers regarding the management of the centre.

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Mandi nodal officer Mohan Kumar Jena and Mandi Primary Agriculture Credit Society (PACS) officer Sishir Kumar Panda were charged with failing to fulfill their responsibilities despite holding key oversight roles at the procurement centre.

Recent discord at the Mandi surfaced when issues with token distribution erupted, leading to confrontations between the local cultivators and staff members, four days ago. In light of these events, the District Collector intervened to rectify the ongoing problems and ensure streamlined operations.

Worth mentioning, Food Supplies Minister Krushna Patra had previously brought allegations of irregularities to the fore on January 27 within certain rice mills during ongoing paddy procurement.

The Minister revealed that he had received advice from a senior IAS officer to ‘turn a blind eye’ to the complaints of local farmers against these mills—a suggestion that Minister Patra openly criticised.

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The Minister expressed his dismay at being encouraged to disregard conflicts between the farmers and the mill owners. He had stated that this attitude must be urgently addressed.

“At some places, an IAS officer asked me to refrain from interfering and rather to leave the things on to the farmers and millers. ‘Do not interfere in the procurement and let them (the millers) take the produce themselves’,” the Minister had said quoting the IAS officer.