KAMAREDDY: Flash rains have been disrupting the ongoing paddy purchase activity in the Kamareddy district, causing concern among farmers about whether paddy sales would be completed or not. This situation has also become a challenge for the officials.
Over the past three days, flash rains have affected several parts of the Kamareddy Assembly constituency, disrupting paddy purchases and soaking paddy stocks.
Officials have been sending alert messages through WhatsApp to paddy purchase centre staff and farmers, advising them to use tarpaulins to protect the paddy stocks. However, these measures have not been sufficient to control the situation
One of the elected representatives from Kamareddy noted that officials lack alternative plans to speed up the paddy purchase process.
“We have waited for several days, and after the paddy was soaked by rain, the officials finally started the purchasing process,’’ said a woman in a video circulated in the media.
However, another farmer, Raju from a nearby village, said: “Officials are purchasing paddy in proper order. I completed paddy harvesting several days ago, but due to moisture, my paddy has not yet been purchased.”
Kamareddy district officials expected around 4 lakh mts of paddy during the second crop. They aim to purchase 3.5 lakh mts and claim to have purchased 2.6 lakh mts through 350 paddy purchase centres established since March 26. So far, 45% of the paddy purchase has been completed.
Sources said that Kamareddy district has 150 rice mills of which 60 have become defaulters due to lack of CMR stock supply. Currently, paddy is allocated to only 80 mills. Additionally, FCI godowns are filled with stocks, rice mills have three crop stocks, and a lack of vehicles is creating further problems in the paddy purchase activity. Several farmers have observed that addressing these issues is the only solution to overcome this situation.
Meanwhile, Kamareddy district Additional Collector K Chandra Mohan stated that dry paddy is being shifted to rice mills first, while wet paddy is sent to boiled rice mills. He assured that the department will purchase all the paddy stocks.
