The procurement season would commence from November 1 and continue till June next year. The government will procure paddy during Kharif and Rabi seasons separately during the period. In terms of rice, this comes to around 48 LMT, said Chief Secretary S.C. Mahapatra.
For Kharif, the tentative target for procurement of paddy would be 57 LMT and for Rabi, it will be 14 LMT. "There is no bar for procurement of any higher quantum if more paddy comes to 'mandis' from registered farmers," he said.
Under the policy, the state's Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister has been authorised to revise this target if the need arises, he informed.
In KMS 2022-23, 71.03 LMT paddy was procured (both kharif and rabi included). In terms of rice, it was 48.08 LMT, he said. The Kharif paddy will be procured in the state from November 2022 to March 2023 and Rabi paddy from May to June, next year.
Paddy will be procured as per MSP declared by government of India at a rate of Rs 2,040 per quintal for common variety and Rs 2,060 per quintal for Grade-A variety.
Odisha State Civil Supplies Corporation (OSCSC) will procure paddy in all districts. Payment of farmers' dues on account of paddy sold to the government shall be transferred directly to their bank accounts through online mode within 24 to 48 hours of the sale of paddy, said the chief secretary.
Odisha requires 22 LMT of rice annually for its PDS. Surplus rice will be delivered to Central Pool through the Food Corporation of India (FCI).
The cabinet has also decided to change the pattern of Odisha civil services examination at par with the civil services examination conducted by the UPSC.
The amendment was made so that candidates can prepare themselves for the civil services examination conducted by the Odisha Public Service Commission (OPSC) and Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) simultaneously, he said.
As per the decision, out of total of 2,000 marks, 1,750 for written tests and 250 is for personality test. The written test includes Odia, English, Essay, General Studies-I, II, III, IV and Optional Subject Paper-I & Paper-II. All written test papers consist of 250 marks.
The candidate will require more time to adapt to the revised pattern of the examination. As such it has been proposed to revise the attempt to appear for the examination also, said Mahapatra.
Now, the unreserved category (UC) students can appear for the test for six attempts while SEBC candidates can appear for nine times. There is no limit for the SC & ST category students, he said.
Moreover, the cabinet has approved the proposal to merge the directorates of mining & geology administration under the Steel & Mines department.
According to sources, as many as 13,000 gunny bags filled with paddy are lying in one of the mandis in Subarnapur and the situation is quite similar in other mandis as well.
"We brought the paddy 15 days back and were told that millers will buy them but nothing has been done yet. We are having a hard time here sleeping outside in this cold weather guarding the paddy," a farmer from Subarnapur, Ajit Kumar Sahu said.
Another farmer B Bala Raju from Gajapati said "Citing that the colour of the paddy has changed, the millers are not buying them so we are forced to sell them to agents from outside the State at a price of Rs 1100 to Rs 1200 per quintal."
As per government reports, out of the 2,588 Primary Agricultural Cooperative Societies(PACS) who participated this year in the paddy procurement process, mandis have opened in 2,426 PACS as of January 5. Nearly 3,39,087 farmers have already sold 19,69,710 metric tonnes of paddy.
Even though there were directions by the Food Supplies Department to pay the farmers within 24 to 72 hours of procurement, Rs 587 crore is still pending to be paid to farmers.
Meanwhile, Food Supplies Minister Surjya Narayan Patra has assured that action will be taken against the people who are not opening the mandis. "There will be departmental action if they don't open the mandis for procurement of paddy," Patra said.
On the other hand, Opposition parties have targeted the State government.
"The State government officials have a nexus with the mill owners to get funding for elections. The farmers of Odisha are being forced to sell their paddy at low prices," Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said.
Similarly Senior Congress leader Suresh Routray alleged that the State government doesn’t care about the paddy farmers.
"Paddy is not being bought in any mandis. They had just gone to Delhi for fun and not for the welfare of the farmers," Routray said.
As per reports, several trucks and tractors carrying sacks of paddy were seized by the local farmers in front of Jhankarpali mandi in the district following which a scuffle ensued between the local farmers and the farmers who came from outside the district to sell paddy.
Questions are now being raised on where do the famers got the huge quantity of paddy as the crop cutting report suggests that more than 56% region of the panchayat was affected by drought.
It is being alleged that farmers from nearby Jharsuguda and other areas are buying paddy at low cost and selling them at the mandis here at higher prices to get more profit.
"Through a letter, they declared that the mandi was closed on January 12 but the mandi was again opened to buy the paddy from the farmers," said Gurucharan Das, president of Jagannath Krushak Sangathan.
Meanwhile, local farmers have written a letter to the President of Katarabaga 'Seva Samabaya Samiti' drawing his attention to the matter.
On the other hand, the farmers who have come to sell the paddy have claimed that they are genuine farmers who worked hard and due to various reasons like rain and personal issues, there has been a little delay in bringing the paddy to the mandis.
They also informed that they have met the district collector who had earlier given the permission for procurement of paddy at the mandis. "As we do not possess any written permission, the locals have detained the paddy trucks," alleged a farmer.
However, Sambalpur collector, Samarth Verma informed that after the sub-collector submits a report after a detailed probe, necessary actions of procurement will be done.
On the other hand, Odisha Cooperation Minister Surjya Narayan Patro said "After showing the land documents, the farmers will be registered as members, and only then the paddy will be collected from them."
The members of the outfit staged protest by placing gunny bags filled with paddy on the road and raised slogans against the minister.
"Fake list of the farmers are being prepared while the millers are purchasing the paddy for Rs1,200 and selling at Rs1, 750 and we have come here to seek answer from the minister. Under the KALIA scheme, Odisha doesn’t have data regarding the number of farmers in State “said General Secretary of BJP Krushak Morcha, Surath Biswal.
Meanwhile, several activists were taken into preventive custody by the police to avoid any untoward situation.
However, the minister couldn't be contacted over the allegations leveled by BJP Krushak Morcha.
According to sources, three panchayats and six wards of Bhadrak municipality are dependent on these cooperative societies for paddy procurement; however delay in the procurement process has left the farmers of the region in severe distress.
The farmers have also submitted a memorandum to the district collector regarding their problem, but any step is yet to be taken for the same.
“Mandis are not yet operational. Though we have apprised the district administration about the issue, they haven’t paid any heed to us. The authorities have asked us to sell our paddy in Berhampur. But it’s difficult for us to cover a long distance and bear transport expenses," rued a farmer Chandramani Nayak.
“Our paddy stocks are lying in open and getting affected due to unseasonal rain. We are facing a tough time due to the delay in opening mandi,” alleged another farmer Achyutananda Rout.
On the other hand, Bhadrak Assistant Registrar of Cooperative Societies, Swatibala Mohapatra said that mandis are not opened yet as a case regarding appointment of new secretary of the society pending before the High Court.
“Despite the order of the High Court asking for removal of the present secretary, the society is not agreeing to it. We can’t act against the High Court order,” she stated.
“Therefore, paddy procurement can be arranged at other places as per the convenience of the farmers “she added.
According to sources, tonnes of paddy brought for sale by farmers from distant villages are lying outside the mandis for the last 15 days. The farmers are spending sleepless nights to guard them as no millers have come forward to take paddy from the mandis.
The farmers alleged that the district administration had not paid any heed to their repeated complaints.
Meanwhile, Malkangiri Zilla Parishad President Dasaratha Padiami extended his support to the farmers and joined the protest.
"Despite frequently alerting the administration about the farmers' issues no steps have been taken in this regard," Padiami alleged.
The agitated farmers demanded that paddy procurement process should begin at the earliest and they should get actual pay of their produce.
Due to the protest, vehicular movement between Malkangiri and Jeypore was severely disrupted.
As per latest reports, police have reached the spot to pacify the farmers. The agitating farmers have threatened to continue the protest until their demands are fulfilled.
In reply to a letter from Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Ram Vilas Paswan wrote " I would like to inform you that the department has decided to give relaxation in the FAQ norms for the purpose of procurement of paddy in 15 districts of Odisha to facilitate farmers affected by unexpected unseasonal rains".
He further stated that the Centre is committed to the welfare of farmers. Any proposal regarding the interest of the farming community will be given top priority, Paswan mentioned.
Sources said Pradhan had discussed with the Union Food Minister several times in the past over relaxation of FAQ norms. He had also shot a letter to Paswan last month, requesting relaxation in the quality norms for paddy procurement in Odisha.
On the other hand, Odisha government feigned ignorance about Centre's decision. "The Union Minister, Ram Vilas Paswan, has neither replied to my letter nor the State has received any communication from the Centre on relaxation of FAQ norms," Odisha Food Minister SN Patro said.
Stating that the quantity and quality of paddy have been badly affected by the unexpected non-seasonal rain last year, Pradhan said a team of quality control officers of Food Corporation of India (FCI) has found that the affected paddy do not meet the FAQ standards.
“It is understood from various interactions that unless the Government of India relaxes the FAQ norms for paddy crop in Odisha the farmers would be forced to make distress sell of paddy,” Pradhan stated in his letter.
Commenting on Pradhan's letter, Odisha Food Supplies Minister Surya Narayan Patro said it is unfortunate that the union minister realized the problem when nearly 50 to 60 percent paddy have already been sold.
In a letter to the Agriculture department Secretary on Tuesday, the Food Supplies Secretary has sought details on crop damages so that the later will present a demand before the Centre demanding FAQ relaxation.
Unseasonal rain has created fear among farmers of not getting good prices for their harvest. Some farmers have harvested immature paddy hurriedly fearing rain.
After pest attack, untimely rains have increased the woes of farmers in different districts of the State.
Sources said about 50 per cent paddy and vegetable crops have been damaged due to rain.
On Wednesday, the ruling party slammed the Centre for rejecting Odisha government’s proposal to hike minimum support price (MSP) of paddy.
Also Read: Mahanadi water dispute: Centre betrayed Odisha, says ruling-BJD
The ruling party stated farmers of Odisha would stage protests if the Centre does not reconsider its decision.
The Agriculture Ministry rejected the State’s MSP hike proposal. Instead it has stated in a letter to the State government that if farmers are unhappy with the current MSP, they can sell paddy in the open market.
The ruling party stated farmers of Odisha would stage protests if the Centre does not reconsider its decision.
Rohit Pujari, deputy chief whip of the ruling party, said, “It is unfortunate that the Agriculture Ministry rejected the State’s MSP hike proposal. Instead it has stated in a letter to the State government that if farmers are unhappy with the current MSP, they can sell paddy in the open market.”
BJD MLA Sanjay Dasburma said, “The Agriculture Ministry’s decision on paddy MSP shows anti-Odisha attitude of the Centre.”
Refuting the charges, Odisha BJP spokesperson Sajjan Sharma stated though the Chief Minister had promised sops for farmers in Sohela of Bargarh, they are yet to get anything.
“Odisha can follow the footsteps of Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh and provide financial aid to farmers from own funds,” Sharma said.
In a letter, the Agriculture Ministry said Odisha’s demand for paddy MSP hike is not logical. If farmers are unhappy with the MSP, they can sell their paddy in open market, the letter added.
https://youtu.be/WP5Xb0jsA10
As soon as the House assembled on the second day of the brief monsoon session in the morning, BJD legislators stood up, shouting slogans in support of their demand for MSP hike.
Unable to conduct business due to the chaos, Speaker Pradip Kumar Amat adjourned the House till 3 pm.
Thereafter, a delegation of the BJD went to the Raj Bhavan to submit a memorandum to the Governor, addressed to the President, listing their demands.
When the House reassembled at 3 pm, leader of opposition Narasingha Mishra of Congress asked the treasury bench to bring a censure motion against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for not meeting the Assembly Committee, headed by Speaker Pradip Kumar Amat, over the MSP on paddy.
"The Prime Minister has no time for farmers of Odisha who have been denied enhanced MSP on paddy. Though the House had passed an unanimous resolution authorising the state government to demand Rs 2930 per quintal as MSP on paddy, the Prime Minister did not meet the Assembly Committee. Therefore, a censure motion needs to be passed in the House against the PM," Mishra said.
As Speaker remained silent on the matter, the Congress members led by party's whip Taraprasad Bahinipati rushed to well of the House and shouted slogans against both BJP and BJD and blamed them for the plight of the farmers.
Attacking the BJP-led government at the Centre on the MSP issue, senior BJD leaders, including Debi Prasad Mishra, told reporters outside the House that the party was also in favour of special category state status to Odisha.
The party leaders lashed out at the Central government over a water dispute connected to river Mahanadi between Odisha and Chhattisgarh, seeking early resolution.
Flow of the river water into Odisha was severely affected, due to construction of barrages and dams in the upper reaches of Mahanadi by Chhattisgarh, they said.
On the adjournment of the House, Leader of Opposition, Narasimha Mishra said that discussion on an adjournment motion on a farmers' problem moved by Congress could not be taken up because of the disruption.
https://youtu.be/1tBnnyL7n6Q
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had ordered the Vigilance department in 2013 to investigate the scam, but the anti-corruption wing is yet to submit its report.
However, the scam again hit the headlines after NABARD carried out a detailed investigation into the alleged irregularities and wrote to the concerned department.
Sources informed that the Cooperation department is likely to reopen the case soon following NABARD’s intervention.
"There are complaints with the Chief Minister that computers and other items were purchased at higher than the market prices. The case is already with the Vigilance department. After NABARD's letter, I have written to the registrar of cooperative societies to probe and submit a report soon,” said Cooperation minister Surya Narayan Patro.
Allegations related to the purchase of computers, printers and other unwanted accessories at twice the market rates by the Primary Agricultural Cooperative Societies (PACS) came to fore in 2013.
For a total of 2,171 primary cooperative societies, different machineries and computer items were purchased for paddy procurement in 2013 without even floating tenders.
“Hope the fraudsters will be exposed soon. The officials who carried out the purchases have mostly been transferred now," said the complainant, Pabitra Kumar Pradhan.
The Ministry has proposed to increase the MSP for paddy from Rs 1,470 per quintal to Rs 1,550.
BJD spokesperson Samir Das said the party will stage protests over the Centre’s decision and the date will be finalised after talking to the Chief Minister and the farmer’s cell.
Food Supplies minister SN Patro stated, “The hike in paddy MSP is too little. Even if the State wants to support the farmers with bonus, the government cannot do so due to restrictions imposed by the Centre.”
Reacting to the development, Congress chief whip Tara Prasad Bahinipati said, “The Centre’s decision to hike Rs 80 per quintal in the MSP is disparaging towards farmers. We will launch a stir against the move.” He informed the party had demanded for a paddy MSP at Rs 2,930 per quintal in the State Assembly.
Earlier, the State Assembly had unanimously passed a resolution during last session demanding a hike in paddy MSP to Rs 2,930 per quintal. The House Committee chaired by the Speaker had also sought an appointment to meet the Prime Minister to present their demand for consideration.
Meanwhile, farmers’ associations in the State opposed the amount of hike in paddy MSP terming it as an ‘anti-farmer’ move.
As per the Agriculture Ministry website data, the paddy MSP has been hiked on basis of recommendations made by the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP). The price for A-grade paddy is fixed at Rs 1,590 per quintal.
As per sources, not even a single farmer of Jajpur, Kandhamal, Khurda, Mayurbhanj and Nayagargh districts has registered for the online process while in Rayagada only two farmers have enrolled their names to sell their winter crops.
The State Government has directed the paddy procuring district administrations to review the pace of farmer registration with Civil Supplies Officers, ARCS, DRCS along with other officials for expediting the process and take suitable remedial measures wherever possible.
Speaking about the situation, Bijay Kumar Prusty, Joint Secretary Food and Civil Supplies department said “The procurement process begins on May 1 and will continue for a period of two months up to June end. The District Collectors have been asked to expedite the process.”
It is pertinent to note that last year around 1,89,000 farmers were registered for paddy collection through PACS, but this year, only 19,389 farmers of 19 districts have enrolled.
While the procurement process of the winter crops is scheduled to begin from May 1, the government has not yet fixed the rates of crops to be procured from an acre of land.
In some areas, farmers do not even idea about online registration since the process went online last year itself.
In case of Abdhut Dhurua and Durga Prasad Pradhan, residents of Lakhanpur in Jharsuguda, they have toiled hard this season to reap their produce but are forced to sell at low rates since they are unaware of the new facilities for procurement.
“The government is not interested in buying Rabi paddy so we have to sell it to local middlemen and bear losses. Of late we have come to know that Jharsuguda district has been included in the list of Rabi crop procurement districts. If there are any such facilities then we will ask the society boards and try to sell our produce,” they said.
According to sources, Business Advisory Committee of the House is to finalize a date for discussion on the issue in today’s session. Respective notices in this regard had been given by the Leader of Opposition Narasingha Mishra and Agriculture Minister Pradip Maharathy earlier.
While Mishra had given the proposal of raising the MSP of paddy to Rs 2800 per quintal, Maharathy had proposed raising it to Rs 2500 per quintal.
Notably, after the proposal is passed in the Assembly it will be sent to the Central Government for approval.
The opposition is also likely to target the ruling party on issues regarding Puri Swargadwar land grab and illegal government land encroachment in the Capital city.
Apart from the rabi field crops, vegetables mostly peas, tomatoes, bitter gourd, cucumber, brinjal have suffered damage in areas of Balang, Astarang, Gop, Kakatpur in Puri district.
The farmers of the district were hopeful of a bumper harvest but the untimely rain has shattered the hopes of farming community in the district.
Also Read: Farmer’s Suicide Not Due To Crop Loss Or Debt Burden: Minister
“We are now harassed as bulk of the produce has been damaged in the rains,” said Dwijibar Sahu, a farmer.
“We completely depend on agriculture and have no alternative source of income. We had not anticipated such losses this time,” said Balkrushna Panda, another farmer.
The plight of farmers in Nabarangpur is also not different as they are now forced to go for distress sale of their produce. The middlemen and traders purchase these in cheaper rate in absence of proper storage facilities and food processing unit. The market demand has also marginally fall, the farmers rued.
“Despite investing lakhs in farming, we are not able to make profits as there is no adequate demand for the produce in the present situation. Besides, lack of storage and marketing options, we are facing lot of hardship,” said Sukumar Sarkar, a farmer.
The paddy farmers too are facing problems as there has been inordinate delay in procurement in Bhadrak district. The civil supplies department had targeted to procure paddy from 56,000 registered farmers through 108 societies, the process is yet to start in the district.
“Already we have procured 7.50 quintals out of the targeted 12 lakh quintals paddy and we hope to complete the process of procurement through societies at the earliest,” said Bhadrak Civil Supplies Officer (CSO) Rajkumar Sahoo.
Dhenkanal: When the entire locality enjoys the dreamy nights after a day-long tiredness, the farmers of some villagers in Dhenkanal district spend sleepless nights, not in the quiet comforts of their homes but atop tree outside their villages.
To protect their standing crops from the rampage of wild elephants, the ryots of Palagandua, Kasipur,Puruna Amanga and Bhaliapat under Sadangi range in the district work in their paddy fields throughout the day and stay awake all night using mashals (torches), sirens and fire crackers in an attempt to chase away the elephants. The fearful farmers are habituated in the practice of dispersing the animals at night and subsequently devising strategies to drive away the pachyderms.
When the jumbos chase them in a fit of rage, the farmers take refuge in the treehouse- a small hut made of bamboo, palm leaf and hay. They scamper up home-made bamboo ladders to their elevated huts whenever they hear the thundering roars.
"We can also see the movements of the elephants far away atop the tree and accordingly alterted fellow farmers of the neraby areas by beating drums. Mobile phones act a major medium of communication during the time", Gopal Lenka, a farmer of Palagandua village, said.
He added that the forest officials also come to the spot very often on receiving calls and assisted the farming community in protection of crops.
The dawn and dusk are the most crucial times for the farmers, during which they have to be extra alert. "As the elephants in herd come out of the forest in the evening in search of food, we have to remain prepared during that time. Similarly, the animals return to their habitat in the dawn time during which there is chances of the crops being destroyed", Basant Sahoo, another farmer said.
Although the forest department has provided the farmers with powerful high beam torch lights to chase away jumbos, the farmers alleged that these are not enough to deal with the animals at night. "The forest department should furnish more such torches to us", Sahoo added.
The wildlife experts also echo similar views as an easy way of driving away the pachyderms unhurt. “Apart from spending huge amounts in solar fencing, trench digging, the Forest department should provide seven to eight such torches to each community centre in villages for chasing the elephants. I consider it as a most cost effective measure for the government, which spend enormous amount for same reason”, activist and wild life expert Ranjit Patnaik said.
The government is providing Rs 1000 per acre to farmers facing elephant menace. “Moreover, this amount is disbursed late and not during harvesting period, which leads to anger of peasants. As a result, sometimes they (farmers) are found instigating poachers to kill animals. The money given to the ryots are often considered as the ‘compassionate’ and not ‘compensation’. The forest department should change such mindset at the earliest”, Patnaik rued.
Spurred by the loss of their forest habitats, the elephants are forced to venture into human habitation leading to a man-animal conflict.
The House panel, headed by the Assembly Speaker, today discussed and criticized the MSP hike approved by the Centre in July this year. The panel also decided to meet the President of India and Prime Minister over the issue.
The Speaker will also reportedly write to the PM and seek more time for the implementation of the hike.
"The House panel condemns the hike approved by the Centre. The President & the PM will be urged once again to provide more time," said Opposition Chief Whip, Tara Prasad Bahinipati.
"We denounce the Rs 200 per quintal MSP hike by the Centre. We will soon approach the officials with the concerns of the House Committee," said BJD's general secretary, Sanjay Das Burma.
On the other hand, BJP spokesperson, Golaka Mohapatra said that the production cost of paddy has been increased by the Odisha government and without politicising the issue, the government must repay the amount as bonus to the farmers.
The Centre had increased the MSP of paddy (common grade) by Rs 200 to Rs 1,750 per quintal while that of Grade A variety by Rs 160 per quintal to Rs 1,750.
The decision, taken by the Union Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, comes less than a year before next general election.
While the BJP had promised in 2014 to give farmers a price of 1.5 times of cost, an announcement to give effect to the promise was made in the government's fifth and final annual Budget presented on February 1 this year.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) at its meeting today approved the MSP of 14 Kharif (summer-sown) crops.
According to sources, the MSP of paddy (common grade) has been increased by Rs 200 to Rs 1,750 per quintal, while that of Grade A variety by Rs 160 per quintal to Rs 1,750.
The MSP of paddy (common) was Rs 1,550 per quintal and Rs 1,590 per quintal for paddy (grade A) variety.
The MSP of cotton (medium staple) has been increased to Rs 5,150 from Rs 4,020 and that of cotton (long staple) to Rs 5,450 from 4,320 per quintal.
In pulses, tur MSP has been raised to Rs 5,675 per quintal from Rs 5,450, and that of moong to Rs 6,975 per quintal from Rs 5,575. Urad MSP has been hiked to Rs 5,600 from Rs 5,400 per quintal.
Hike in paddy MSP will increase the food subsidy bill by over Rs 11,000 crore based on procurement figure of the 2016-17 marketing year (October-September).
The Food Corporation of India (FCI), the government's nodal agency for procurement and distribution of foodgrains, buys wheat and rice from farmers at MSP and supply the grains under the food security law.
Paddy is the main kharif (summer sown) crop, the sowing of which has already begun with the onset of southwest monsoon.
Earlier, sources had said that the MSP rate proposed by the agriculture ministry is higher than the government's farm advisory body CACP, considering growing farm distress because of fall in prices of most crops, owing to bumper production.
India is estimated to have harvested a record foodgrains production at 279.51 million tonnes in the 2017-18 crop year (July-June) on all-time high output of rice, wheat, coarse cereals and pulses.
The announcement of higher MSP coupled with forecast of normal monsoon this year could further boost foodgrains output. However, the higher support price could also fuel food inflation.
Meanwhile in Odisha, Congress chief Niranjan Patnaik criticised the Centre over the inadequacy of hike in paddy MSP.
"Forget this year's production cost, MSPs announced by Modi govt today is not 1.5 times of even last year's cost. This was PM's last chance to redeem himself after causing 4 yrs of distress. But Alas! he failed again" tweeted Niranjan Patnaik.
https://twitter.com/NPatnaikOdisha/status/1014469518666522624
While ruling-BJD MP and spokesperson, Pratap Deb said "It is the highest ever increase by any government in the past 15 years, but as per the Swaminathan Committee it should have been increased by further Rs 300 per quintal."
The House supported the resolution moved by Agriculture Minister Pradeep Kumar Maharathy and said the farmers should get appropriate price for paddy. The Minimum Support Price (MSP) for paddy had been only Rs 1470 per quintal which was much less than the input cost.
Maharathy said the state government had written three letters to the Centre seeking hike in the MSP to Rs 2500 per quintal. But, the central government fixed the MSP for paddy at Rs 1470 per quintal.
"The MSP being fixed by the Government of India is not commensurate with the rising cost of inputs such as seeds, fertiliser, manure, micro nutrient, irrigation charges and hiring of farm machinery for paddy being incurred by farmers in our state," Maharathy said.
Maharathy in his resolution wanted the MSP for paddy should be Rs 2500 per qunital. However, the price quoted by agriculture minister was not accepted by the government chief whip Ananta Das, who moved an amendment for making the MSP at Rs 2930 per quintal of paddy.
Das said the MSP for paddy should be Rs 2930 per quintal as the farmers have to spend Rs 2344 to produce one quintal of paddy. "Rs 2930 is perfect as it gives 25 per cent extra to farmers on their investment to produce one quintal of paddy," Das said.
Leader of Opposition Narasingha Mishra of Congress, however, said that the MSP for paddy should be Es 3516 per quintal as Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a public meeting at Bargarh had promised to give one-and-half-times more to the farmers on their expenditure to produce food grains.
"Therefore, I have demanded that Rs 3516 should be the MSP per quintal of paddy in accodance to the Prime Minister's promise," Mishra said.
The agriculture minister, however, rejected Mishra's proposal on the grounds that the Centre would reject it because they (Centre) were reluctant to increase the MSP to Rs 2500 per quintal of paddy. Maharathy, however, said he supported the price quoted by the government chief whip.
Mishra volunteered to withdrew his amendment as he wanted a unanimity for adoption of the resolution.
Maharathy said a House Committee would be set up under the chairmanship of the Speaker to take up the matter with the Centre. The committee will meet the Prime Minister and put forth the MSP issue.
Earlier participating in the discussion, BJP member Rabinarayan Nayak criticised the state government for not fighting for the farmers who sustained loss for producing paddy. The BJP has demanded Rs 2800 as MSP per quintal of paddy.
The resolution was adopted after three hours of discussion on the minister's proposal. Both the opposition Congress and BJP had joined hands while demanding for adoption of a resolution on the MSP.
Speaker Niranjan Pujari had yesterday announced on holding a discussion on the government s resolution on MSP for paddy immediately after the question hour today.
The new paddy varieties include flood-resistant 1009 Sub-1, drought-resistant Sahabhagi, high-yielding and short-duration Mrunalini and Satya Krushan and long-duration Upahara, officials said.
"The district frequently faces natural calamities like unseasonal rain, floods and cyclones and drought. The new varieties of paddy will survive such situations for a fortnight," Deputy Director of Agriculture (DDA), Ganjam, Sudarshan Mohanty said.
Developed at Central Rice Research Institute (CRRI) in Cuttack, the new varieties were introduced in some pockets of different districts, including Puri, on a trial basis last year. "The experiment yielded good results and the government decided to introduce them over 2,000 to 3,000 hectares in Ganjam," he said.
Agriculture officials have decided to cover more areas with Swarna Sub-1, another flood-resistant variety, this time.
"We have targeted to cover around 7,000 hectares with the paddy variety as against 2,000 hectares the previous year," the DDA said.
The field officers in the agriculture department have been asked to create awareness on the benefits of the new paddy varieties, he said.
The department has set a target to increase paddy productivity from 28 to 42 quintals in the district. "The yield decreased last year due to drought-like situation," Mohanty said.
The paddy coverage area, however, has been reduced to 2.16 lakh hectares. It was grown over 2.21 lakh hectares the previous year. "We have decided to reduce the areas under paddy cultivation in highlands as these experienced drought," he said.
"Farmers have lost their crops in the districts of Ganjam, Naygarh, Khurda, Puri, Cuttack, Jagtsinghpur, Kendrapada, Jajpur, Bhadrak, Balsore, Mayurbhanj and Keonjhar," Samajwadi Party state president Rabi Behera said in a letter to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
Behera said the rice millers could take advantage of the situation and farmers would face difficulty as the authorities may estimate the weather beaten crops as of low FAQ (fair average quality). In the process, the farmers will be denied minimum support price, he said.
Similarly, vegetables have also been damaged and 'unscrupulous'traders and vendors would hike the?price of vegetable in the market, he said adding potato, groundnut, mung and black mung crops are also destroyed.
Seeking early assessment of the crop loss due to unseasonal rains that lashed different parts of the state for last three days, the SP leader demanded easy availability of interest free loans to the affected farmers.
"The farmers will get special assistance of Rs 100 per quintal, over and above the minimum support price of paddy," Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said at a public meeting in Baragarh.
Claiming that he was running a farmers' government, he said: "The government considered the plight of the farmers sympathetically and made this decision to help the peasants affected by the twin calamities."
Patnaik said the farmers would get the benefit of special assistance till the end of Kharif season which was mostly till April next year.
The state is likely to bear an estimated additional expenditure of Rs 150 crore, a senior official said, adding, the assistance would be given to a farmer up to 100 quintals of paddy.
The farmers disposing more paddy would get the benefit up to 100 quintal. This apart, the government has also decided to exempt CST on paddy, which is generally two per cent, in case farmers sell their product in other states, he said.
The state government has targeted to procure about 30 lakh quintals of paddy during the ongoing Kharif season, sources said.
The decision was reportedly taken at the state cabinet meeting last night, but was not made public in view of model code of conduct being in force for the ensuing Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation elections.
Patnaik had also held a separate meeting with BJD leaders on the subject. Earlier, a group of MLAs from western districts had sought payment of bonus on paddy.
The decision comes three days after Patnaik's convoy was obstructed by angry farmers near the State Secretariat on December 24. At least 26 members of the Navanirman Krushak Sanagathan (NKS), were arrested on charge of obstructing the Chief Minister's convoy.
While demanding bonus for affected farmers, the NKS activists had also demonstrated inside the Assembly during the winter session of the House.
Both Congress and BJP, however, slammed the state government for making the announcement of special assistance on paddy keeping any eye on next general elections.
"Patnaik's announcement exposes the government's narrow political motive. It would be better if the government announces Rs 300 bonus per quintal of paddy," Congress chief spokesman N Mishra said.
Senior BJP leader B B Harichandan also alleged that the announcement was made keeping in view the next elections.
Even after 2 months since the beginning of procurement process in Malkangiri, multiple gunny bags filled with paddy are lying unsold in various mandis. Despite urging the local administration several times, farmers have alleged that the issue is yet to be resolved. Responding to the allegation, administrative officials have assured that a solution will be found soon after discussing with the millers.
"We are making all arrangements to ensure that the paddy lying in some mandis is procured soon," sub-collector of Malkangiri Rameswar Pradhan said.
In Bhadrak, farmers have written a letter to the government urging to include 10 millers from outside the State. Paddy procurement process in the district is being done through 106 societies. Apart from 26 millers in the district, 6 millers from Jajpur , Khurda and Sambalpur districts have been included.
Similarly in Basudevpur, many registered farmers have alleged that they have not been able to sell their paddy surplus. There are 22 cooperative samitis through which 12, 642 farmers were registered. While the target was to procure 701667 quintals of paddy, only 204645 quintals have been procured so far leaving farmers in lurch.
"The paddy procurement process has gained momentum and soon the problem will be sorted," an official Kedar Ghosh said.
Kalimuddin had allegedly taken paddy from a mandi after submitting a fake registration number.
The accused had taken a truck load of paddy from Biridi mandi and another from Tirtol. After the truck failed to reach Bargarh by January 23, owner of the mill filed a complaint at the Jagatsinghpur police station.
As per the direction of the Superintendent of Police, a team of cops led by SDPO Prakash Pal raided the rice mill last night and seized the paddy.
"We have arrested the prime accused in the case. He used fake name to steal the truck loaded with paddy," Pal said.
The costlier rabi season crops that are ready for harvesting stands devastated by the gusting winds of Fani. In no time, the standing paddy, moong, til crops and betel plantations were on the grounds submerged in knee-deep water. Farmers who took pains to grow the costlier moong and oilseed (til) crops after taking loans, are now in a state of stupor. One thing nagging their minds is how to repay the incurred loan.
"I have taken a loan of Rs 80, 000 to cultivate betel crop. The entire crop stands damaged now. The farming community are at wits end now. How could the loan be repaid? The only option left for us is taking up some labour work outside the State," said a betel farmer at Balianta in Khurda district.
It's not Balianta alone. While the neighbouring Balipatana block has also seen massive destruction of betel plantation, the story of large-scale crop damage is discernible all along the coastal districts of Puri, Khurda, Cuttack and Jagatsinghpur.
Not only betel and rabi crops, horticultural crops like coconut, banana in Puri district have seen massive damage. These remunerative crops, though are costlier, give the financial cushion to the farmers in the district. Horticultural growers in the district are in a quandary now as they incur huge debts to grow these horticultural crops.
Fani hasn't broken down the spine of farmers, the animal husbandry sector in the districts of Puri, Khurda and other coastal areas witnessed a large-scale destruction affecting especially the fish farming ponds and poultry sector.
Recently, the Union Environment Ministry approved a two-year extension of the construction order for the Polavaram multi-purpose project in Andhra Pradesh, which Odisha has been opposing vehemently. Amongst other demands, while paddy MSP was increased by a mere Rs 65 per quintal, demand for special category state status was denied outright by the Centre. Even after the hike in taxes on petrol and diesel, the Odisha government has not issued any strong statement against the Centre.
“The hike in commonly used items like petrol and diesel will definitely affect people. We will raise voice against those issues which are anti-people,” BJD MLA, Amar Prasad Satpathy said.
Meanwhile, Congress has targeted both the BJP and the BJD.
“Naveen babu has supported the Budget tabled by the Centre and on many other occasions, he has taken a soft stance against the BJP. Then why Odisha is not getting special category status,” Congress MLA Sura Routray said.
Responding to the allegations, former Finance Minister and BJD leader Shashi Bhushan Behera said, “BJD will not function as per the wish of Congress. They should first take care of their own party.”
Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan too slammed the Congress party and said, “They should first save their own dignity which they have lost after elections. They don’t have any moral authority to raise questions on the Polavaram issue and the party should introspect.”
Political analyst Prasanna Mohanty said, “Naveen Patnaik’s silent attitude and calculated response towards the issues concerning Odisha is creating an atmosphere of suspicion. Discussions are on whether it is happening due to pressure or some invisible power.”
Krushna Chandra Naik from Bamara area in Sambalpur district has made this multi-utility farming equipment, which can be used for multiple purposes by farmers. He has very fondly named it "Panchakarma". Despite being a government employee, his zeal to do something new has brought him laurels from different corners.
Krushna asserts that pests can easily be eradicated from paddy fields using this device.
"The machine can do five different types of work, so I have named him 'Panchakarma'. I want this to be widely accepted by the farmers and wish the government promotes it further. It will be largely beneficial for agriculture as well as the farmers," said Krushna.
Surprisingly unlike other machines, this doesn't need any fuels like petrol, diesel or electricity. The Additional Agriculture Officer of Bamara, Devanand Sahoo welcomed it and said, "Pests wreak havoc this time of the year. The device will be tested in the field among farmers. According to their feedback we will advise Krushna to do modifications in it if necessary."
Another such inventor is Dwitikrushna Gauda, who successfully managed to make a name for himself by inventing a user friendly farm equipment.
Dwitikrushna, who hails from Gothali village in Ganjam district has his farm located on an elevated altitude, because of which he faced serious problem in irrigating his field. He never gave up and invented a new device through sheer determination and perseverance.
The water lifting pipe, which he claims to have made from water pump footballs and some other materials is capable of lifting water from 15 feet below the ground. He, however, is researching on how to lift water to 40 feet and quite hopeful of achieving it soon enough.
As per figures released by the Registrar of Cooperative Societies, out of 12, 35,758 farmers who registered for selling paddy, actual Aadhaar information of 3,27,089 farmers is mismatching with the data uploaded with the government.
This is despite the fact that the Registrar has made it mandatory to link bank accounts of the beneficiary farmers with their Aadhaar numbers before disbursement of crop loan.
Now while the State government has disbursed Rs 7,018 crore loan for 17, 26,003 farmers this Kharif season, Aadhaar linkage of only 9 lakh farmers have been completed.
So question arises that despite making Aadhaar linking mandatory for loans, on what basis so many farmers were sanctioned loans without linking. It is suspected that more than 8 lakh non-farmers could have taken loans.
“It is for sure those loans were issued to non-farmers under forged deals,” alleged Chandrakant Panda, a farmer leader.
As per data, even though 17 lakh farmers have availed loans, there are scores of farmers who are interested to avail loans by linking their Aadhaar cards but are unable to do so due to loopholes in government system.
“We are not getting any benefits as we are not able to link our Aadhaar numbers,” rued a farmer Prafulla Lenka.
When asked about the irregularities, Food Supplies Minister & Cooperation Minister Ranendra Pratap Swain refused to comment on the matter.
As per the allegations, on December 7, Jute Mill Police in Chhattisgarh seized a vehicle carrying 38 gunny bags of paddy belonging to one Manoj Meher of Kanaktora village in Odisha. Manoj was reportedly carrying the produce to his home after harvest.
Later, the cops took the vehicle to police station, registered a complaint and allegedly detained Meher for some hours before releasing him.
“Some policemen from Chhattisgarh first asked me about the paddy bags which I was loading on to my vehicle. Then they said that they will launch an inquiry and seized my vehicle,” said Meher.
Later, Meher’s relatives informed the matter to Rengali Police, Jharsuguda Police and the district administration. Allegedly after no action was taken, farmers of Kanaktora resorted to protest.
As per sources, Chhattisgarh government offers higher Minimum Support Price (MSP) for paddy than the Odisha government. Hence, it is believed that the neighbouring state's police are suspecting Odisha farmers residing in the bordering areas of selling their produce in Chhattisgarh.
Meanwhile, district collector of Jharsuguda, Saroj Samal, has assured that they are in talks with Chhattisgarh administration to resolve the issue.
“Since a case has been registered in Chhattisgarh, we are unable to take any steps. However, they have assured us that they will resolve the issue and ensure that the vehicle is released,” said Samal.
On the other hand, Chhattisgarh Home Minister Tamradhwaj Sahu, during his Odisha visit, said that he will look into the matter.
Farmers of the district also claimed that they have not received the tokens which the State government has made mandatory for paddy procurement. "We have already begun packing of the paddy. However, we are worried as neither the mandis have been opened, nor we have received any token from the State government," alleged Maheswar Bhoi, a farmer.
District Civil Supplies Officer, Bhikari Charan Mangaraj, on the other hand, claimed that farmers of the district have been sensitized about the token system.
"We have already made the farmers aware about the token system. Apart from distributing leaflets, we have conducted several awareness programmes at the panchayat level," informed Mangaraj.
"Till date, we have bought 65,780 quintals of paddy through 36 out of 47 LAMPS in the district. Other LAMPS will be opened in a couple of days," he added.
The eight districts whose collectors have been put on alert are Bargarh, Sambalpur, Bolangir, Kalahandi, Nuapada, Jharsuguda, Sundergarh and Nabarangpur, the officials said.
The additional secretary in the food supplies and consumer welfare department, Bijay Kumar Prusty said that kharif paddy procurement has commenced in the border districts from the second week of November and it should be done only from registered farmers as per the tokens issued to them.
In a letter to the collectors last week he asked them to ensure that paddy procured by authorised societies and groups is only from genuine registered farmers and to see that the benefit of MSP for paddy does "not go to unauthorised entities under any circumstance".
Noting that there is a possibility that some unscrupulous traders or persons will try to push paddy procured from Chhattisgarh into the procurement system in the border districts, Prusty suggested that collectors should ensure that unauthorized paddy sourced from the neighbouring state does not enter the premises of procuring societies and groups.
District and sub-divisional level squads should conduct periodic checks to keep an eye on unscrupulous traders bringing paddy from Chhattisgarh, he suggested adding that action should be taken against them, millers and persons found involved as per the law.
(PTI)
A common sighting in the Golabandha village of Telkoi block is a mini truck carrying vegetables and groceries to sell it to the customers, but the intriguing part is that, he accepts paddy instead of money and barters it for vegetables.
Ramesh, a local of Chhendipada in Angul district has adopted the old system of commodity exchange quite successfully and seems quite content in doing business in the rural areas, where paddy is available in abundance.
As far as the locals are concerned, they do not find any problems with it. With mandis being far away from their farm lands and the high transport cost associated with it, the new form of trade has come in handy for people in the area, especially small-time farmers.
Pramila Biswal, a local of Golabandha said, “They sell puffed rice, rice flakes and almost all the vegetables. The shop keepers here do not accept paddy, so with an option for barter system, Ramesh is eagerly awaited here by almost all households.”
Similarly, Manjulata Biswal, another local of the village said, “I love puffed rice, but nobody is selling that now a days. But Ramesh makes sure he brings puffed rice to our doorstep in exchange of paddy.
The distress sell had even made many such farmers to stock up their produce hoping to sell it in the future at a reasonable rate. And the mini truck with Ramesh has provided them an opportunity to sell their produce in return of daily essentials, creating a win-win situation for both, the seller and the buyer.
“I started locally from Chhendipada and now moving around for business. The response of people is great but limited to only rural areas. People in urban areas pay in currency, which will not fetch any profits in my model of business,” said Ramesh.
However, local intellectuals like, Jenamani Pradhan suggests, locals are actually forced for bartering, because they cannot sell their paddy in the mandi. “We have only 15-20 people who take their produce to mandis. Others sell to middle men in a very low price. Even after that, a lot of paddy remains with them as stock, which they are happy to barter with Ramesh,” said Pradhan.
(Edited By Suryakant Jena)
Though the Centre has fixed Minimum Support Price (MSP) at Rs 1868 per quintal of paddy, the farmers are not getting the benefits. The millers are forcing them to sell their produce after deductions ranging 2 to 10 kgs per quintal, alleged Purihit, the State President of BJP Kishan Morcha.
He futher alleged that the millers are providing the benefit derived after such deductions to the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD).
BJP Kishan Morcha President Pradip Purohit targets #Odisha govt over farmers' issues; says, "Farmers are in distress over 'Katni Chhatni' & token system in paddy procurement. They are forced to sell paddy at low price as govt does not have control over millers."
— OTV (@otvnews) December 11, 2020
“What the State government has done for the development of farmers in the last 21 years. Though it is passing resolutions in Assembly, it has failed to ensure that farmers sell their produce at MSP fixed by the Centre,” said Purohit.
Millers are directly interfering in the procurement process and forcing farmers to sell their paddy after deducting 2 to 10 kgs per quintal. What step has the Odisha government taken to stop such exploitation, questioned the BJP leader.
It is pertinent to mention here that the Odisha government in Cabinet meeting chaired by the Chief Minister here on Wednesday passed a resolution to press for formulation of MSP on all crops aimed at doubling the farmers’ income.
During the Cabinet meet, the State government had also decided to move the Centre for implementation of MS Swaminathan committee report on minimum support price (MSP).
Meanwhile, the BJD leaders could not be contacted over the allegations levelled by BJP’s Pradip Purohit.