CUTTACK: The district-level paddy procurement committee (DLPC) is all set to start purchasing kharif paddy from Wednesday. As per the decision of the committee, while procurement will commence from Wednesday in Banki and Athagarh sub-divisions, the collection of stock from farmers in the Cuttack Sadar sub-division will be started from January 3.
As many as 71,509 farmers have registered through online mode at 212 primary agriculture cooperative societies (PACS) across 14 blocks to sell their kharif paddy at minimum support price (MSP). Around 231 mandis have been set up in the blocks for procurement of paddy stock from the farmers.
Agriculture minister Ranendra Pratap Swain is scheduled to inaugurate the mandi at Rajnagar in Athagarh sub-division on Wednesday. For the first time, the DLPC has decided to record the paddy procurement process at the mandis so that farmers cannot be exploited in any manner.
CCTV cameras have already been installed in almost all the 231 mandis to keep a tab on paddy procurement process, said deputy registrar of cooperative societies, Cuttack division, Siba Prasad Swain. The DLPC has set an initial procurement target of about 1,71,278 quintals from 71,509 registered farmers.