THANJAVUR: The state's first mega direct paddy purchase centre (DPC) which has a capacity to procure about 15 tonnes of the harvested crop per hour was inaugurated by Food and Civil Supplies Minister R Sakkarapani on Saturday at Panchanathikkottai in the district. The facility has a dryer, machine for packing paddy in 40 kg bags and conveyors to load the bags onto trucks, the minister told media persons after the inauguration.
The mega DPC built at a cost of Rs 1.41 crore could procure up to 150 tonnes of paddy per day if procurement is done 10 hours per day. At present around 600 to 800 bags (24-32 tonnes) of paddy can be procured in a day in DPCs, he added. More such mega DPCs will be opened across the Cauvery delta districts after considering the functioning of the new one, Sakkarapani further said. To a question, the minister said compared to last year six lakh tonnes more paddy was procured this year by the TNCSC-run DPCs.
A record quantity of 62,000 tonnes of paddy was procured across the state on a particular day this year, the minister said. Further he said after the DMK government came to power, open storage of procured paddy has been done away with and the procured paddy is being stored in the covered warehouses so that the harvest is not damaged in the rains. During the current procurement season an incentive of Rs 130 per quintal for fine variety and Rs 105 per quintal for common variety paddy are being given to the farmers, the minister added. Industries Minister TRB Rajaa, Thanjavur MP S Murasoli, TNCSC MD A Shanmuga Sundaram and District Collector B Priyanka Pankajam were present.