Paddy procurement begins in Kangra from tomorrow
The State Food and Civil Supply Corporation (SFCSC), in collaboration with the Kangra District Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee (APMC), is set to procure paddy from farmers at four designated procurement centres in Kangra district, starting October 10. These centres are Fatehpur, Riyali and Milwan near the inter-state border and Nagrota Bagwan, where paddy will be procured for the first time.
The Central Government has announced a minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 2,320 per quintal for grade A paddy this year, compared to Rs 2,203 last year. To facilitate farmers, the Kangra APMC is providing essential infrastructure such as potable water, waiting rooms, electricity, parking, wooden crates and winnowing machines for grain cleaning.
Dixit Jaryal, Secretary of the Kangra APMC, emphasised that labour charges for unloading and grain cleaning have been set at Rs 10 per 37.5-kg/bag. Contractors are prohibited from overcharging and farmers who handle their own unloading and cleaning will not have to pay any fees.
The procurement centres at Milwan, Riyali and Fatehpur have storage capacities of 1,100, 600, and 400 metric tonnes, respectively. Last year, the SFCSC procured 3,744 metric tonnes of paddy from 438 farmers across these centres. This year, the corporation aims to procure 3,900 metric tonnes of paddy from all four centres.
Swaran Singh, Area Manager of the SFCSC, noted that while the official procurement date is October 10, farmers have been allowed to bring their produce to the centres starting October 5. Paddy cleaning and stacking are underway, with procurement set to begin once slots are booked through an online portal.
The shift from the Food Corporation of India (FCI) to the SFCSC for paddy procurement, which started last year, continues to streamline the process for farmers in the region.
