BARGARH: Peeved over the alleged delay in procurement of paddy from the Kubedega mandi in Bargarh’s Bheden block, farmers of the area on Wednesday staged a roadblock by dumping their stock on the Bargarh-Bheden road as a mark of protest.
As per sources, around 5,000 bags of paddy are currently stored at the Kubedega marketyard. However, protesting farmers, under the banner of Sanjukta Krushak Sangathan, alleged the stock is not being lifted in time due to the alleged autocracy of the rice millers.
Several farmers expressed concern over being exploited by middlemen once their tokens lapse. They alleged their paddy is being rejected on the basis of quality and weight. This apart, inadequate infrastructure at the marketyard along with winter moisture poses risk of deteriorating the quality of the paddy, they pointed out.
Farmer leader Ramesh Mahapatra alleged despite tall claims of the government, rice millers are trying to influence the procurement process and middlemen are very much active at the mandis.
“In Kubedega mandi, the paddy procurement process is going on at a snail’s pace. Many millers are trying to buy the paddy directly from farmers and deducting two to three kg per quintal on the pretext of quality. We demand that there be no deductions on the pretext of quality if the paddy is of FAQ standard. This apart, the weight of paddy measured at the mandi should be accepted by rice millers,” he said.
The blockade, which had begun at 7 am, was lifted after five hours after department officials including the deputy registrar of cooperative societies (DRCS) and civil supplies officer (CSO) besides tehsildar and police reached the spot and assured of fulfilling the farmers’ demands.
For the ensuing kharif season, as many as 1,55,366 registered farmers have been verified for selling their paddy. A target has been set for procurement of 73 lakh quintal paddy from Bargarh. As many as 52 primary agricultural cooperative societies (PACS) and 20 women self-help groups (WSHGs) have been engaged to ensure smooth procurement across 229 mandis.
However, according to the farmers, at least 150 mandis are lying unoperational as rice millers and middlemen are directly lifting paddy from them due to irregularities in the procurement process including token issues. Due to this, farmers complained they are facing deductions.
In another protest on December 10, farmers of Kumbhari village in Barpali had locked the chief CSO inside his office as a mark of protest while they had gone to discuss the same issues. The farmers have threatened to intensify their protest if their demands are not met.
