BKU (Charuni) for paddy procurement from Sept 15

Kurukshetra, July 3

The Bhartiya Kisan Union (Charuni) has requested the Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare to start paddy procurement from September 15.

In a letter sent to minister Narendra Singh Tomar, the union has stated that the farmers these days use hybrid seeds and the crop matures in 80-90 days, hence the government should start early procurement.

Last year, paddy farmers blocked the NH-44 in Shahabad for advanced procurement. At present, the paddy sowing is in full swing. Nearly 1.10 lakh hectares are covered under the paddy crop in Kurukshetra, and sowing has been completed in nearly 70 per cent of the area.

Rakesh Bains, spokesman the Bhartiya Kisan Union (Charuni), said, “The procurement agencies enter the grain markets from October 1 as per the government policy, but it is too late for Haryana and Punjab. Earlier the crop used to mature in 100-120 days, due to which the procurement used to start from October 1, but these days the farmers use hybrid seeds and the crop matures in 80-90 hence the government should also start early paddy procurement.”

“The produce starts reaching grain markets from the second week of September, and in the absence of government purchase, the farmers are forced to sell their stocks to private players at cheaper rates. We have requested the government that the procurement should be started from September 15,” he added.