Revanth orders crackdown on defaulting rice mills, dues recovery

Hyderabad: Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy on Wednesday, August 12, ordered officials to crack down on rice millers defaulting on the Custom Milled Rice (CMR) targets and collect outstanding dues down to every last grain.

He was conducting a meeting with Civil Supplies Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy and other officials from the department.

He accused the previous Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government of allowing dues of thousands of crores to accumulate and then putting the burden of recovery on the current government.

The Chief Minister directed officials to formulate various strategies for the collection of dues and to submit a report to the Cabinet Sub-Committee. Appropriate action will be taken based on the committee’s review, he said.

He added that grain allocations to millers who have repeatedly defaulted on the targets will be redirected to women’s groups.

In the context of the difficulties faced every season in storing grain, the Chief Minister ordered a pilot project to set up silo bags in Nalgonda, Suryapet, Nizamabad, Peddapalli, and Kamareddy, where large quantities of grain arrive.

He announced that 50 to 100 acres of land would be allocated to each constituency for the construction of silo bags under the leadership of Self-Help Groups.

A meeting will be organised with the ministers of Revenue, Civil Supplies, and Women’s Welfare Departments regarding their construction. He also suggested that private warehouses, Kalyana Mandapams, old theatres, and other sheds be identified in advance and leased for grain storage.