KOCHI:The first thing that hits a person while approaching the huge godown at Thottumukkam is the terrible stench. At first, it seems the smell is emanating from a rotting carcass nearby.However, the closer one gets, the clearer things become. There's no carcass. Rather, the stench is emanating from the sacks of rotting rice. On Friday, workers were seen clearing out the stinking, unusable stock and loading them onto huge trucks.
It is estimated private rice distributors in the region, comprising Muvattupuzha, Kalady, Aluva and Muttom, incurred a loss of Rs 50 crore in the floods. Shameer, the proprietor of Ameen Traders at Thottumukkam, said he himself incurred a total loss of Rs 2 crore. “The water rose eight-sack high and soaked the bottom layer completely. The grains in the sacks swelled to twice their size and toppled the sacks stacked above. So, the entire consignment got destroyed,” he said.
“The entire stock comprised various rice varieties, whose price ranged from Rs 27 per kg to Rs 40 per kg. Besides rice, we had stocks of Bengal gram, green gram, maida and broken rice,” Shameer said.“We are clearing out the damaged stock. Only then can cleaning be done. It will take days to restore the godown and restock,” said Shameer. He is not the only one.
Navin Pai of Navin Traders, Kochi, said, “Reports are pouring in of the loss incurred by rice mills and distributors. Some distributors lost 6,000 sacks of rice. The areas where flood wreaked maximum havoc were also where a large number of rice mills are located,” he said.
“The distributor don't deal with just one variety of rice. So, their losses would be even higher. Mills in Aluva, Muttom and Kalady were affected the most. In Muvattupuzha, there are around 16 distributors, while in Aluva and Muttom, there are 13 and three distributors, respectively. The number will be higher in Kalady if you consider both big and small mills there,”Navin said.“A clearer picture will emerge once details come in from all the areas,” he said.
Rotten rice finds takers in TN
Kochi: Rice distributors worried over their rotting rice stocks have something to cheer about. For the rotten rice is in huge demand in Tamil Nadu. Shameer, the proprietor of Ameen Traders, said the rice was being taken to pig farms in Tamil Nadu. "Already, around 10 trucks have left with the stinking cargo to Tamil Nadu. More will be on their way soon," he said. The grains and pulses will also find their way to fertiliser factories where they will be converted into compost," he said.