Paddy pangs irk farmers, mandis flooded, purchase, payments smooth in dist

Farmers are in for a nightmare as paddy pangs have refused to ease out in the district.

With paddy glut on the rise, grain markets (mandis) in the state’s biggest and largest district, in terms of area and population, continue to remain flooded with the food grains as only 31 per cent of the total 3.27-lakh metric tonnes (LMT) of procured paddy has been lifted from the mandis so far.

However, the procurement of arriving stocks and payments to farmers remain smooth across 146 mandis, including 38 temporary yards, under 13 market committees of Ludhiana.

Also, the private purchase of paddy has finally begun with the commission agents (arhtiyas) starting the procurement of foodgrains following the government’s assurance to increase their commission.

Claiming that the situation has started improving and will further improve in days to come, District Food and Supplies Controller (DFSC) Geeta Bishambu told The Tribune here on Thursday that lifting had picked up pace with almost 45 per cent of the paddy procured during the past 72 hours already been cleared from the mandis.

She said the administration in close coordination with the Food and Civil Supplies Department and the four state-owned procurement agencies was ensuring swift procurement and before time payments to the farmers for their procured stocks.

“We have been able to purchase over 85 per cent of the total paddy that had arrived in our mandis

so far and have paid up to 122 per cent of the payments due to the peasants,” Geeta shared.

She said 3,26,814.6 MT of the total arrived 3.82,827.8 MT paddy had been procured in the district while Rs 763.6 crore had already been paid to the farmers, which was 122 per cent of Rs 628 crore payment due within 48 hours of purchase.

On the lifting front, 1,02,249 MT of the procured 3,26,814.6 MT paddy had been lifted from the mandis, which comprised 45 per cent of 2.29,461.2 MT stocks due to be lifted within 72 hours of the purchase.

On Wednesday, 33,730.5 MT of more paddy arrived in the mandis, of which 26,847.1 MT was purchased and 19,312 MT was lifted during the day.

Barring 37.5 MT of paddy purchased by arhtiyas, the rest of the stocks had been procured by Pungrain, Markfed, Punsup, and Punjab State Warehousing Corporation (PSWC).

However, the Central agency, Food Corporation of India (FCI), has not yet begun purchase in the district.

The DFSC detailed that of the total 497 rice shellers in the district, 364 had applied for storage, 323 had been allotted stocks and 239 had already signed the agreements for storage and milling of procured paddy. “Since their godowns are still full with the milled rice of the previous season due to non-clearance by the FCI, we hope that the lifting will soon pick up pace after godowns of rice millers are freed of the previous stocks,” she added.

Besides the parmal variety of paddy, 33,091 MT of basmati rice had also arrived and fully procured in the district till Wednesday. The growers had fetched as high as Rs 3,125 per quintal and as low as Rs 2,490 per quintal for the basmati so far.

On the harvesting front, 62,493 hectares, which accounted for 24.4 per cent of the total 2,56,500 hectares of area under paddy in the district, had been harvested so far.

According to the data compiled by the Agriculture Department, the Ludhiana block had harvested 2,640 of 13,200 hectares of paddy, Mangat 6,798 of 30,900 hectares, Pakhowal 4,237 of 22,300 hectares, Sudhar 4,046 of 28,900 hectares, Jagraon 2,817 of 31,300 hectares, Sidhwan Bet 5,661 of 33,300 hectares, Khanna 6,468 of 19,600 hectares, Doraha 3,024 of 18,900 hectares, Dehlon 3,618 of 20,100 hectares, Samrala 7,755 of 14,100 hectares, and Machhiwara had reaped 10,755 of total 23,900 hectares area under paddy till date.