Procurement of paddy for this Kharif season in Chhattisgarh will begin on Sunday and continue till February 15 next year.
This paddy will have to be procured by the state government through primary cooperative societies. Food and Civil Supplies Minister Amarjeet Bhagat instructed for making necessary arrangements for the same.
The state government has set a target of procuring 85 lakh metric ton (LMT) of paddy from farmers this Kharif season.
As it intended to contribute surplus rice for National Food Security Act (NFSA) through Food Corporation of India (FCI), the state government decided to procure the paddy from state farmers on the MSP prescribed by the Centre i.e. the MSP for common grade paddy at Rs 1,815 per quintal and for Grade A crop at Rs 1,835.
Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, however, committed that his government would pay to farmers Rs 2500 for per quintal of paddy anyhow and a cabinet sub-committee has been formed to explore the ways to pay the “balance amount” for this purpose.
The state government promised that the paddy would be procured from state farmers at the rate of Rs 2500 per quintal. But it had to settle for the central government’s prescribed rate as otherwise the Centre, because of its policy decision, would not be able to take the surplus rice from state for central pool under National Food Security Act (NFSA) through Food Corporation of India (FCI), the CM said.
Keeping in view the technical difficulty the government last Monday formed a five-member cabinet sub-committee to suggest how to pay the balance amount of Rs 685 per quintal to state farmers as the Congress government in the state promised to procure paddy at the rate of Rs 2500 per quintal.
