Koraput: Mandis or paddy procurement centres would be opened at 21 places in Odisha's Koraput district to procure paddy for the rabi season.
The mandis are expected to be operational very soon and at least 70,000 quintals of paddy will be procured during rabi, officials said.
Atogether 5,000 quintals of paddy will be procured by a mandi and an individual farmer will be allowed to sell a maximum of 100 quintals.
"The farmers have been asked to bring fair average quality paddy to the mandi. The mandis will remain open till we achieve our target," said Ballav Chandra Das, Civil Supplies Officer, Koraput.
A massive awareness drive will be launched through banners, posters and distribution of leaflets regarding the procedure to be followed for selling paddy at the mandis to make farmers aware of its modus operandi, he said.
While the money will be directly transferred to the bank account of the farmers after procurement, all necessary steps are being taken to ensure the smooth functioning of these paddy procurement centres to ensure that the farmers do not face any difficulty.