Over 1 Lakh Odisha Farmers Served Notices For Submitting False Crop Details

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha government has issued show-cause notices to more than one lakh farmers for allegedly furnishing false information during the registration process for the Rabi season under the Kharif Marketing Season (KMS) 2024-25.

According to the food supplies and consumer welfare (FS&CW) department, discrepancies were found in the crop data submitted by farmers. As many as 1,81,684 non-paddy plots were falsely registered as paddy-growing fields — a direct violation of the state’s procurement eligibility norms.

The irregularities came to light during a verification exercise conducted by the FS&CW Department, which suspects deliberate misinformation by the applicants to gain undue benefits under government procurement schemes.

In response, the department has served notices to the concerned farmers, asking them to explain the discrepancies within seven days of receiving the communication. Failure to respond will result in disqualification of the concerned land from paddy procurement for one year.

The Registrar of Cooperative Societies (RCS) has also directed all Deputy Registrars to initiate prompt action. Letters from both the Cooperation Department and FS&CW Department have been circulated, detailing the steps to be taken against violators. The crackdown has triggered anxiety among farmers, particularly those who had registered land without actually cultivating paddy during the Rabi season. They now face potential blacklisting from government-supported procurement schemes.

However, the move has drawn sharp criticism from several farmer organisations. They have raised serious questions about the role of cooperative societies and procurement agencies, arguing that such large-scale misregistration could not have occurred without lapses in verification at the institutional level.