Paddy

Odisha Govt deploys special teams to check illegal paddy inflow into state

The Odisha government has deployed special enforcement teams in various districts to curb the illegal inflow of paddy from neighbouring states during the procurement season, the state government said on Friday. So far, 84 enforcement teams have been deployed in various districts, including 10 in Bargarh district and 21 in Sambalpur district, it said. While the central government's minimum support price (MSP) for paddy is Rs 2,300 per quintal, the state government has announced an additional Rs 800 per quintal as assistance to farmers. This has triggered concerns that some traders may attempt to bring paddy from other states to sell it in Odisha at a higher price. The government has set a target of procuring 80 lakh tonnes of paddy during the current Kharif Marketing Season (KMS) 2024-25. According to the statement, the teams will monitor vehicles entering Odisha with paddy from neighboring states, as well as vehicles moving from mandis (paddy procurement centres) to mills and ...

Rains continue in Tamil Nadu, standing crops hit in Cauvery delta areas

Rains continued overnight in Tamil Nadu's Cauvery delta areas affecting standing paddy crops and the India Meteorological Department on Wednesday said heavy to very heavy and extremely heavy rainfall is likely in a few places in Cuddalore and Mayiladuthurai districts, also part of the delta region. Rains submerged crops, partially and completely, at several places including those in and around Tiruvarur, Thiruthuraipoondi, Muthupettai, Mayilduthurai, Vedaranyam and according to farmers' rough estimates, crops over at least 2,000 acres were affected. In view of the rains, November 27 has been declared a holiday for schools and colleges, including Tiruvarur, Cuddalore, Nagapattinam, and Mayiladuthurai districts. A holiday has been declared only for schools in Chennai, Chengelpet, Ariyalur, Kanchipuram. According to the IMD--Regional Meteorological Centre's update on Wednesday morning, the deep depression over southwest Bay of Bengal moved nearly northwards with a speed of 10 kmph and

T'gana's decision of Rs 500 bonus on fine paddy pushes cultivation by 61%

In a remarkable achievement, fine variety paddy (sanna vadlu) cultivation in Telangana has gone up by 61 per cent to four million acres this kharif season compared to 2.5 million acres during the same period last year, government sources said on Sunday. In a social media post, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy complimented farmers and said for the first time after the formation of Telangana, despite the Kaleshwaram Project not being in a position to store water, paddy was harvested at a record level. The reason for increase in the acreage (fine paddy) is attributed to the Rs 500 bonus per quintal for the fine variety paddy announced by the Congress government in the state as part of its poll promise, sources said. The state government has announced the Rs 500 bonus on the minimum support price (MSP) on the fine variety paddy from this season. As a result, the cultivation area of sanna vadlu has increased by 61 per cent compared to last time, they said. On the other hand, the ...

Paddy procurement for kharif season in Odisha to start from Nov third week

The Odisha government has decided to commence procurement of paddy from farmers for the kharif season 2024 from the third week of November, a minister said on Tuesday. The procurement will start from Bargarh district, he said. The decision was taken during a meeting of the cabinet sub-committee, held under the chairmanship of Deputy Chief Minister Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo on Monday. This will be the first procurement season after the BJP came to power in the state this year. "The BJP government is committed to fulfilling its promise to buy paddy at Rs 3,100 per quintal. An additional input subsidy of Rs 800 per quintal of the crop will be given to farmers over and above the minimum support price of Rs 2,300 fixed by the Centre," said Revenue Minister Suresh Pujari, who was present at the meeting. During the meeting, modalities to be adopted at the mandi (marketing yard) level were finalised to make the entire procurement hassle-free for farmers, he said. It was also decided in the

Punjab paddy procurement crosses 8.5 MT, Centre says ops in full swing

Punjab has procured 85.41 lakh tonnes (LT) of paddy valued at Rs 19,800 crore in the ongoing 2024-25 kharif marketing season, with procurement operations now in full swing after initial weather-related delays, the food ministry said on Sunday. According to the ministry, about 90.69 LT of paddy arrived in mandis across Punjab till November 2, of which 85.41 LT has been procured by state agencies and Food Corporation of India (FCI). The procurement drive, which began on October 1, has already resulted in payments worth Rs 19,800 crore reaching about 4 lakh farmers across the state. "Though the procurement commenced a bit late due to heavy rain in September and high moisture content in paddy, it is back on track and has picked up in full swing now," the ministry said in a statement. The Centre has fixed a procurement target of 185 LT for Punjab for the ongoing season. The procurement is being carried out at Rs 2,320 per quintal MSP fixed for 'Grade A' paddy. To ensure smooth procurem

'No space crunch in Punjab': Centre dismisses concerns over paddy storage

The Centre on Sunday dismissed reports of storage space shortage affecting paddy procurement in Punjab, terming them "misinformation" created with "vested interests". Union Food Minister Prahlad Joshi on Sunday assured that creating adequate storage space remains the government's responsibility. "Some rumours are being spread. I want to clearly state that creating space is our responsibility. We will take care of that," Joshi said during a media briefing, accompanied by Food Secretary Sanjeev Chopra and FCI Chairman Vanita Rattan Sharma. The state currently has 14 lakh tonne storage capacity, which will increase to 16 lakh tonne by November 1. An additional 31 lakh tonne capacity is being developed under the Private Entrepreneur Guarantee (PEG) scheme. The minister highlighted that 3,800 millers have applied for paddy lifting, with 3,250 already allocated stock for rice conversion. The government has cleared payments worth Rs 9,819.88 crore, of which Rs 7,641 crore has reached ...

Chhattisgarh govt to start paddy procurement at MSP from November 14

The state has set a new record target to procure 16 mt of paddy at MSP in the kharif marketing season 2024-25 compared to the procurement of 14.5 mt paddy in the last kharif marketing season

262K MT of paddy lifted, 1.63 mn MT procured: Punjab food minister

Around 2.62 lakh metric tonnes of paddy has been lifted out of total procurement of 16.37 lakh MT so far in state mandis, Punjab Food and Civil Supplies Minister Lal Chand Kataruchak said on Saturday. Amid farmers protesting against "tardy" procurement of the paddy crop, the minister urged the state rice millers to come forward and start their milling operations, asserting that the state government always stands by them. Several farmers' groups have been protesting against the slow procurement of paddy, which led to a glut in mandis. The state rice millers and the commission agents are also supporting the farmers' protest. The state rice millers have complained of space crunch for storing the fresh paddy crop and want the Centre to liquidate the existing wheat and paddy stock to create sufficient space. Rice millers have also expressed concern over the out-turn ratio (post milling yield) of the PR-126 paddy variety, claiming that it will lead to huge losses. They have said that the

Chhattisgarh to start paddy procurement at support price from November 14

Procurement of paddy at the support price from farmers in Chhattisgarh will start from November 14, an official said on Wednesday. The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai at Mantralaya Mahanadi Bhawan in Nava Raipur earlier in the day, a public relations department official said. The policy of paddy procurement and custom milling at the support price in the Kharif marketing year 2024-25 was approved by the cabinet. It was decided to conduct procurement from November 14 to January 31 next year, the official said. The state government has set a target of 160 lakh metric tonnes of paddy procurement for the 2024-25 kharif marketing season, he said. The process of farmers' registration for the procurement is underway through the Integrated Farmers Portal and will continue till October 31. Approval has been given to purchase 4.02 lakh bundles of new jute gunny bags through Jute Commissioner for paddy procurement as some eight lakh bundles of .

Shiromani Akali Dal asks Punjab to ensure paddy procurement or face protest

The Shiromani Akali Dal on Sunday threatened to launch an agitation if the Aam Aadmi Party government in Punjab failed to ensure procurement and lifting of paddy from mandis within 72 hours. The decision was taken at a meeting of the party's core committee which was presided over by SAD working president Balwinder Singh Bhundar. The committee said that farmers were "suffering" due to the "utter failure" of the government in coordinating with the Centre in either procuring paddy arriving in the 'mandis' or getting it lifted. It said that such a state of affairs was unprecedented in the history of the state and asked chief minister Bhagwant Mann to wake up from his "slumber" and ensure farmers did not suffer or else resign from his chair. Punjab farmers on Sunday held state-wide protests against the alleged tardy procurement of paddy in the state. Akali leader Dr Daljit Singh Cheema said the core committee also expressed concern at the manner in which the AAP government's conduct in

Farmers block roads, tracks to protest tardy paddy purchase in Punjab

Punjab farmers on Sunday blocked roads and squatted on rail tracks at many places in the state as part of their protest against the alleged tardy procurement of paddy in the ongoing Kharif marketing season. While the Samyukta Kisan Morcha has given a call for a statewide road blockade from 12 to 3 pm, the Bharti Kisan Union (Ekta Ugrahan) has also given a call for 'rail roko' for three hours. Police diverted road traffic through alternative routes. In Ludhiana, farmers disrupted road traffic at many places, including Samrala, Kohara, Khanna, Raikot, Doraha, Payal and Jagraon. Farmer leader Balbir Singh Rajewal said despite assurances by the state government regarding the smooth procurement of paddy, farmers are facing problems in grain markets. In Amritsar, protesting farmers squatted on Wallha railway crossing to protest against the slow purchase of the paddy crop. Bhartiya Kisan Union leader Parminder Singh Ugrah said farmers have blocked the Amritsar-Pathankot rail track. Far

Paddy procurement at MSP underway in Haryana, over 46,000 MT procured

The Haryana government has commenced paddy procurement at the Minimum Support Price and so far over 46,000 metric tons of the crop have been procured. According to an official statement issued on Tuesday evening, the paddy procurement began from September 27. "Till date, over 46,000 metric tons (MT) of paddy have been procured from 241 mandis and purchase centers across the state, benefiting more than 7,500 farmers," it said. "Today alone, approximately 1,200 MT of paddy was lifted," it said. In addition, the government is ensuring timely payments to farmers, having disbursed Rs 2 crore directly into their bank accounts, according to the statement. From Tuesday, the procurement of bajra has also commenced at the Minimum Support Price. The state government has opened 91 mandis and purchase centres specifically for this purpose, with over 25,000 quintals of bajra already purchased from farmers of the state. The procurement process is running smoothly and is scheduled to continue un

Stubble burning: From Ground Zero in Punjab, bad news for Delhi-NCR

Govts step up efforts, but farmers say policies unclear, assistance insufficient

Chhattisgarh govt aims to procure 160 mn MT paddy in current kharif season

The Chhattisgarh government has set an estimated target of 160 lakh metric tonne paddy procurement for the 2024-25 kharif marketing season, officials said on Tuesday. The cabinet sub-committee constituted to review and give suggestions on the policy of paddy procurement and custom milling at the support price in the ongoing kharif marketing season took the decision to this effect in a meeting at Mantralaya Nava Raipur on Monday, a public relations department official said. The committee, during the meeting chaired by state Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Protection Minister Dayaldas Baghel, decided to procure an estimated 160 LMT of paddy from farmers in the state, he said. Forest and Climate Change Minister Kedar Kashyap, Health and Family Welfare Minister Shyam Bihari Jaiswal and Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Tank Ram Verma were also present in the meeting. Keeping in view the Diwali festival and the State Foundation Day celebration Rajyotsav, the committee discussed

Paddy acreage up 2.22% to 41.35 mn hectare so far in this kharif season

Area sown to paddy has increased by 2.22 per cent to 413.50 lakh hectares so far in the ongoing 2024-25 kharif (summer) season, the agriculture ministry said on Monday. In the year-ago period, area under paddy was 404.50 lakh hectares. Sowing of paddy, the main kharif crop, begins with the onset of southwest monsoon from June, and harvesting takes place from September. Additionally, area sown to pulses increased to 128.58 lakh hectare till September 23 of the ongoing season, from 119.28 to pulses in the same period last year, the ministry said in a statement. Area sown to 'arhar' and 'moong' reported higher area at 46.50 lakh hectare and 35.46 lakh hectare, respectively, while area under urad was slightly lower at 30.73 lakh hectare so far in the current season. Area under coarse cereals and 'Shree Anna' (millets) increased to 192.55 lakh hectare from 186.07 lakh hectare in the year-ago period. Among coarse cereals, area under maize rose to 88.06 lakh hectare from 84.65 lakh ...

Uttar Pradesh govt to acquire paddy worth Rs 16,000 cr this kharif season

The procurement is scheduled to commence from October 1 and continue till February 28, 2025, starting from Western UP and gradually covering the eastern part

Paddy acreage surpasses normal levels, reaching 40.87 million hectares

Overall, till August 30 kharif crops have been sown in around 108.73 million hectares which was almost 2 per cent more than the same period last year

Govt's kharif rice procurement target 5% higher at 48.5 mn tonnes in FY25

The Centre has fixed kharif rice procurement target at 485 lakh tonnes for the 2024-25 marketing year starting October and asked states to focus on increasing purchases of coarse cereals. In the current 2023-24 marketing year (October-September), the government procured 463 lakh tonnes of kharif rice. Paddy is grown in both kharif and rabi seasons. State-owned Food Corporation of India (FCI) is the government's nodal agency for procurement and distribution of foodgrains. Union Food Secretary on Friday chaired a meeting with State Food Secretaries and FCI to "discuss arrangements for procurement of crops in ensuing Kharif Marketing Season (KMS) 2024-25", an official statement said. Various factors impacting procurement such as weather forecast, production estimates, and readiness of states for procurement operations were reviewed during the meeting. "After deliberations, the estimates for paddy procurement (Kharif crop) during ensuing KMS 2024-25 have been fixed at 485 lakh tonnes

Paddy sowing increases 4.29% so far in 2024-25 kharif season: Report

Paddy acreage increased by 4.29 per cent to 39.42 million hectare so far in the ongoing 2024-25 kharif (summer) season, the agriculture ministry said on Tuesday. In the year-ago period, the area under paddy was 37.8 million hectare. Sowing of paddy, the main kharif crop, begins with the onset of the southwest monsoon in June, and harvesting takes place from October Additionally, the area sown to pulses increased to 12.21 million hectare till August 27 of the ongoing season against 11.55 million hectare in the same period last year, the ministry said in a statement. The coverage of 'arhar' rose to 4.57 million hectare from 4.07 million hectare. Arhar (tur) sowing has been completed. The area sown to 'urad' was 2.9 million hectare against 3.08 million hectare. The area under coarse cereals and 'Shree Anna' (millets) increased to 18.55 million hectare from 17.75 million hectare in the year-ago period. Among coarse cereals, the area under maize rose to 8.72 million hectare against 8

Paddy, pulses sowing area increases by 6% to 36.905 mn hectare: Govt

Paddy acreage has increased by six per cent to 369.05 lakh hectare so far in the ongoing 2024-25 kharif (summer) season, the agriculture ministry said on Tuesday. In the year-ago period, the area under paddy was 349.49 lakh hectare. Sowing of paddy, the main kharif crop, begins with the onset of southwest monsoon in June, and harvesting takes place from September. Additionally, the area sown to pulses increased to 120.18 lakh hectare till August 20 of the ongoing season, from 113.69 lakh hectare in the same period last year, the ministry said in a statement. There was a rise in coverage of 'arhar' to 45.78 lakh hectare from 40.74 lakh hectare. Area sown to 'urad' was 28.33 lakh hectare against 29.52 lakh hectare. The area under coarse cereals and 'Shree Anna' (millets) increased to 181.11 lakh hectare from 176 lakh hectare in the year-ago period. Among coarse cereals, the area under maize rose to 87.23 lakh hectare from 81.25 lakh hectare. Area sown to oilseeds rose marginally t