Telangana to procure 91.28 lakh tonnes paddy this Kharif season

Minister for Civil Supplies N. Uttam Kumar Reddy speaking at a meeting on paddy procurement in Hyderabad on Monday.
| Photo Credit: By Arrangement

HYDERABAD

The State government is planning to procure about 91.28 lakh tonnes of paddy produced this Kharif season, which is expected to start coming to the market from October first week, by opening 7,139 procurement centres in phases, Minister for Civil Supplies and Irrigation N. Uttam Kumar Reddy has said.

Reviewing the preparations underway for the procurement of paddy for the 2024-25 Kharif season with Joint Collectors, District Supplies Officers and District Managers of Civil Supplies Corporation, State-level authorities of the Civil Supplies, Marketing and Warehousing Departments here on Monday, he said the government would also pay ₹500 per quintal bonus to fine varieties of paddy disposed of at the procurement centres, as promised.

Explaining the status of paddy cultivation this season, the Minister said the major cereal crop was cultivated in about 60.39 lakh acres and the production estimated was about 146.28 lakh tonnes (over 1.46 crore tonnes). Fine varieties of paddy were raised in about 36.81 lakh acres and the production was expected to be about 88.09 lakh tonnes.

Similarly, common grade varieties of paddy were raised in 23.58 lakh acres with production estimated to be about 58.18 lakh tonnes. The Civil Supplies Corporation was planning to open 7,139 procurement centres with the help of Primary Agricultural Cooperative Societies (4,496), women self-help groups under IKP (2,102) and other agencies (541).

Stating that harvesting of Kharif paddy would commence in the first week of October and continue till January-end next, the minister stated that paddy arrivals would begin in October first week in Nalgonda and Medak districts; from second week in Nizamabad, Kamareddy, Rajanna-Sircilla, Yadadri-Bhuvanagiri, Mahabubnagar, Nagarkurnool and Narayanpet districts.

From January third week it would begin in Karimnagar, Jagitial, Warangal, Jangaon, Suryapet and Medchal-Malkajgiri districts; from fourth week in Mancherial, Sangareddy, Peddapalli and Hanmakonda districts; from November first week in Nirmal, Siddipet and Rangareddy districts; from second week in Kumaram Bheem-Asifabad, Bhadradri-Kothagudem, Jogulamba-Gandwal and Wanaparthy districts.

Similarly, it would begin in November third week in Jayashankar-Bhupalapally, Mulugu and Khammam districts. The minister stated that the government had made arrangements to store 40 lakh tonnes of paddy procured at purchase centres. He cautioned the authorities against procuring paddy from the neighbouring States.

The food security (ration) cardholders would be issued fine variety rice from January through the public distribution system (fair price shops) and it would benefit about 3 crore population of the State who have ration cards. Every person would be issued 6 kg rice a month.

Civil Supplies Commissioner D.S. Chauhan, Joint Secretary (Civil Supplies) Priyanka Ala, State Warehousing Corporation MD K. Lakshmi, Director of Agricultural Marketing Uday Kumar and others attended the meeting.