HYDERABAD: With the Centre sticking to its stand of not purchasing parboiled rice from Telangana state during rabi season, Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao is all set to devise and release "rabi (yasangi) action plan" suggesting alternative crops for farmers in place of paddy.
Official sources said the Chief Minister would hold a meeting with the agriculture minister and department officials in a day or two to finalise the yasangi action plan aimed to divert farmers from sowing paddy to other crops.
The Chief Minister returned to Hyderabad on Wednesday after his four-day trip to Delhi on Sunday. He will also make an announcement on crediting Rythu Bandhu amount in the bank accounts of farmers for extending financial assistance of Rs 5,000 per acre in rabi and appeal to farmers not to use Rythu Bandhu amount to sow paddy.
The Chief Minister made all the efforts to step up pressure on the Centre to purchase parboiled rice from Telangana, usually produced in rabi, as was being done all these years. He himself sat on a dharna at Indira Park along with his entire Cabinet, Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) MLAs, MLCs and MPs on November 18 demanding the Centre to purchase parboiled rice from Telangana. Prior to that, the TRS has organised dharnas in all the Assembly constituencies on November 12 across the state in which all TRS MLAs,
MLCs, ministers and MPs participated.
Later, the Chief Minister rushed to Delhi on Sunday last to take up the issue with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and union food minister Piyush Goyal. However, he could not meet them due to their busy schedule.
But a delegation of ministers comprising K. T. Rama Rao, S. Niranjan Reddy and Gangula Kamalakar held discussions with Piyush Goyal on Tuesday and put forth the demand of Telangana government to procure parboiled rice in rabi. However, the Centre categorically stated that it would not purchase parboiled rice from Telangana in rabi.
With the Centre remaining firm on its decision on parboiled rice, the Chief Minister felt the urgent need to alert farmers not to sow paddy as rabi sowing has just started in the state. Strict instructions will be issued to the agriculture department to convince farmers not to sow paddy stating that the state government will not procure paddy in rabi and if farmers still opt for paddy, it will be at their own risk. Only those farmers who have tie-ups with seed companies or rice millers for paddy purchase should opt for paddy in rabi, according to officials.
