Hyderabad: Chief Minister K.Chandrasekhar Rao on Saturday directed officials to make payments to farmers in time.
He said the government had so far procured 37 lakh tons of paddy worth Rs 5,300 crore from farmers this year, of which Rs 4,000 crore had been paid. He asked officials to pay the balance Rs 1,000 crore immediately without waiting for funds from the Food Corporation of India.
Mr Rao said the state witnessed highest-ever paddy production this year and as a result huge quantities of paddy stocks were reaching the civil supplies department’s purchasing centres.
He said the state government was ready to spend any amount of money to purchase the paddy and asked the officials to arrange for the immediate payments to farmers, adding that though the state government was releasing funds, it was taking time for the money to reach farmers and this delay should be checked.
Mr Rao held a review meeting with civil supplies commissioner C.V. Anand and other officials at Pragati Bhavan regarding the procurement of paddy. The officials informed the CM that last year, around this time, the procurement was 9 lakh tones but this year 37 lakh tons of paddy had already been procured and another 2 lakh tons were expected to arrive at the centres.
In 2013-14, the maximum procurement was at 17 lakh tons in Telangana, which had increased by 2.5 times this year.
Mr Rao said with the monsoon setting in, the farmers needed money to start agricultural activities for the kharif crop and said the government would act as the farmers' guarantor. Officials have been instructed to review the situation regularly and make the payments promptly.
