MALKANGIRI: TENSION ran high in Korukonda on Monday with a large number of farmers hitting the streets to protest irregularities in paddy procurement and lack of tokens in the local mandi or paddy procurement centre.Farmers under Korukonda large area multi-purpose cooperative societies (LAMPS) jurisdiction blocked the Malkangiri-Balimela road by parking paddy-laden tractors for hours. Raising slogans against discrepancies in paddy procurement, the farmers under the aegis of Zilla Krushak Mahasangha demanded intervention of the district administration and State Government.
They claimed that 886 farmers under Korukonda LAMPS have not got tokens to sell their paddy and paddy stocks are not being lifted by millers on time. As a result, they are forced to stay in the mandis to guard their stocks. Although civil supply officers are aware of the situation, they are silent.
The State Government is currently procuring 19 quintal per acre in irrigated and 12 quintal from non-irrigated land. Farmers alleged that although they have paid water cess, their irrigated lands are mentioned as non-irrigated in the official records as a result of which, less paddy is being procured from them.
Farmers who have registered their names under the paddy procurement automation system (P-PAS) for selling their surplus paddy to government agencies under the price support system are unable to dispose of their stock due to such lapse. Similarly, non-irrigated lands are mentioned as irrigated. This apart, millers are not providing gunny bags to farmers for stocking paddy or reimbursing the amount that they are spending towards purchasing the bags. “They are also deducting at least 5 kg paddy against weight of a gunny bag that is used to pack one quintal of paddy”, said Dhanurjaya Hantal, a farmer.
Blaming the administration for the irregularities, the mahasangha president Ghenu Muduli said the irregularities are a result of nexus between millers and officials with vested interest. He said LAMPS authorities are only procuring 40 quintal paddy from 10 acre land besides, crop grown on land provided to them under Forest Rights Act is not being procured.
Vehicles were stranded on both sides of the road due to the blockade. Malkangiri IIC and Korukonda block officials assured the agitating farmers to look into their demands within eight days following which the blockade was lifted. Sub-Collector and in-charge District Civil Supply Officer Rameswar Pradhan admitted delay in lifting paddy and said steps are on to streamline the process.
Token roadblock again
Sambalpur: Farmers of Sambalpur are unable to sell paddy despite assurance by the State Government to procure the produce from market yards in the district without tokens. On Monday, they gheraoed the Civil Supplies Office here, alleging that they could not sell paddy in the market yard at Bareipali as centralised tokens could not be generated. In the morning when they reached the market yard to sell paddy, their tokens could not be found in the database of the Food and Civil Supplies Department. Secretary of Sambalpur Zilla Krushak Surakhya Sangathan, Byomokesh Thakur said both the district administration and State Government had assured that procurement will not be hampered due to token system. After being denied tokens, farmers have to either take paddy back which is an additional expense for them or keep the stock in the open at the market yard. They further alleged that a majority of farmers who sold their paddy are yet to get payment. Farmers threatened to intensify stir if the issues are not addressed by Wednesday. Civil Supply Officer, Ranjan Seth said tokens of only those farmers have been deleted from the database who were given time up to December 15 for selling paddy. “The rest can still sell their crops. Also, we have started making arrangements for issuing tokens against those that have been deleted from the database”, he said.