‘Insufficient’ supply of gunny bags, farmers turn to FCI-run silo

Parveen Arora

Karnal, March 23

Though the Food Corporation of India (FCI) has withdrawn its order on the linking of the mandis to the Adani silo in Solumajra, it is business as usual at the silo premises in Kaithal where farmers offload their grains.

The insufficient supply of gunny bags in the local grain markets adjoining villages has forced the farmers to head to the Adani silo grain storage godown in Solumajra village where parallel procurement by government agencies is being carried out for the FCI.

Few visitors earlier

Earlier, very few farmers used to go to this silo, but now agencies are forcing the farmers to bring their produce in bulk to this silo by not providing sufficient gunny bags in the mandis. —Hoshiyar Singh Gill, state vice-president, bku (charuni)

Farmers, reluctant to offload their grain on the silo premises, allege that the supply of gunny bags has been deliberately curtailed to divert their produce traffic to the privately owned FCI-rented silo.

“Due to the poor system at the entry point, long queues of tractors and trailers can be seen during the season on road. It leads to the wastage of time,” said Partap Singh, who is a farmer and also a commission agent.

Hoshiyar Singh Gill, state vice president BKU (Charuni), said earlier very less farmers used to go to this silo, but now the agencies have been ‘forcing’ the farmers to bring their produce in bulk to this silo by not providing sufficient gunny bags in the mandis.

Though the silo is completely mechanised, offloading grain on the premises will adversely affect the employability of labourers who clean grains, unload, pack and upload the grains in the mandis, he added.

However, some farmers do maintain of having smooth working here to save time. The arhtiyas, too, continue to get their commission by way of issuance of form I and form J, said an official.

Though the farmers have been selling their produce at the silo since 2007, it came into focus last week after the FCI circular.

A farmer coming to this silo is issued a gate pass by the employees of the market committee, after which weighing, and cleaning, moisture testing is done in automated techniques. The procurement agencies procure it. Later, the grains are stored in silo bins and the need for gunny bags gets eliminated.

During the last wheat season, this mandi-cum-godown had purchased 1.8lakh MTs wheat, of which around 20,000 farmers had sold 1.07 lakh MTs directly as per their wish.

Pradeep Dahiya, Deputy Commissioner, said farmers were free to sell their crop in any grain market as there was no compulsion. Arrangements are being made in all grain markets to facilitate the farmers.