Uttar Pradesh agency hopes to meet paddy purchase target

Uttar Pradesh State Food and Essential Commodities Corporation (UPSFECC), a UP government agency for paddy purchase, is trying hard to meet the target of purchasing 100,000 million tonnes of paddy for the current fiscal.

However, till now the corporation has purchased about 12,084 million tonnes only. The paddy purchase period runs from October 1 to February 28.

Though the achieved target so far is a meagre 12 per cent of the target, the corporation is confident it can raise the purchase quantum.

Talking to Business Standard, Prabhat Sinha, managing director of the corporation, said: "The results are as good as last year's, if not better. Personally I expected about 20 per cent of the target, i.e. 20,000 million tones, by December 15. But the way our management and officers are working, I am confident we can reach 40 per cent of the target by February-end."

The corporation, working in 15 districts currently, has 62 purchasing centres. The districts fall in four divisions: Lucknow, Bareily, Moradabad, and Devipatan. Lucknow has six collection centres while the other divisions have four each.

"For paddy purchase, we have identified 15 centres. Though Devipatan includes the districts of Gonda, Bahraich, Srawasti and Balrampur, we include Gonda only because other areas focus more on sugarcane and arhar production."

The centres are at Lucknow, Sitapur, Hardoi, Lakhimpur, Bareily, Unnao, Rae Bareily, Pilibhit, Shahjahanpur, Badaun, Moradabad, Rampur, Bijnore, JP Nagar, and Gonda.

The corporation started paddy purchase from 2003-04 on its own and it purchases the crop from farmers at minimum support price, decided by the Centre. Currently, the corporation purchases common quality paddy at Rs 620 per quintal.

"This is the fifth year of purchase and we are doing well. The performance of Bareily, Pilibhit and Rae Bareily has been encouraging. Pilibhit has till now purchased 4,910 million tonnes of paddy, which is 31 per cent of its assigned target. Rae Bareily comes second, with 28 per cent of its target of 4,000 million tonnes," added Sinha.

Rs 749.21 lakh has been paid to 1,431 farmers at the rate of Rs 6,200 per million tonne till date.

"We purchase wheat/paddy a month before so that people can get their supply as the month starts. A rice mill is attached to each collection centre. We purchase paddy from the farmer, and give it to the mill to get costumed milled rice (CMR) from them. This should be 64 per cent of the given amount. The designated amount is then forwarded to the state pool," added Sinha.

The corporation has lifted 5,342 million tonnes of CMR from the mills as against its designated amount of 7,304 million tonnes.

"This is an ongoing activity and the balance of 1,962 million tonnes left will be lifted shortly," he added.

The corporation may be renamed Uttar Pradesh Civil Supplies Corporation.