MADURAI: As the kuruvai paddy harvest in Madurai draws to a close, farmers are grappling with a 20% dip in paddy price, from Rs 1,700 per 62-kg bag last year to Rs 1,400 this year, in the open market.
According to rice traders, increase in paddy arrivals from the neighbouring states of Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka and higher moisture content in the local produce due to untimely rainfall are the two main reasons for the drop in price.
According to rice mill owners, paddy with higher moisture content has to be dried for nearly two months. This additional time entails extra cost and the price offered is also proportionately reduced to manage the expenditure. The influx of fine, dry paddy varieties from other states also impacts the price, they said.
Kuruvai paddy was cultivated in nearly 9,000 hectares in Madurai, almost the same as last year, and 80% of the harvest is already over. According to farmers, around 20% of the total harvested paddy (nearly 9,000 tonnes) is sold in the open market.
Sources said the per-kg price for paddy offered at Direct Procurement Centres (DPC) is Rs 25.5.
Rising milling costs keeping rice prices high
Though per-kg price offered at DPCs is Rs 25.5 per kg, at least 20% of farmers are forced to sell their produce in the open market at Rs 23 per kg as the traders pick up the produce directly from the fields and make immediate payments. Small farmers who are hassled by the long wait time at the DPCs prefer to sell their produce even at a loss of Rs 2.5 for each kg.
“We had a bumper yield of over 35 bags per acre compared to the 30 bags per acre yield last year. But the price have dropped to Rs 1,400 per bag (Rs 23 per kilo) compared to last year. DPCs are offering a slightly better rate of Rs 25.5 per kilo,” said ANM Thirupathi Muthuramalingam, a farmer from Madurai. At the Mattuthavani Central Paddy Market, traders said prices have fallen by Rs 2.5 per kilo.
On an average, around 4,000 bags are traded daily in the market. According to rice millers, the decline is driven by both quality and supply factors. “Well-dried paddy varieties can fetch up to Rs 27 per kilo, but much of this season’s produce contains high moisture content due to rains,” explained Vasanthavel, a rice mill owner.
He added that increased inflows of preferred varieties like RNR and Akshaya from Karnataka and AP have further led to drop in prices. Rising power tariffs and taxes have also raised milling costs by nearly Rs 50 per bag, keeping rice prices high despite cheaper paddy.
Deadline nears, just 48% samba insured
Tiruchy: With just three days left to enrol in PM Fasal Bima Yojana, only 48% of samba paddy has been insured in delta. “As officials are engaged in SIR, we are not getting document copies for enrolment,” farmers said