Hyderabad: The Telangana state government has announced the release of Rs 15,000 crore to facilitate the procurement of paddy harvested during the Yasangi (Rabi) season.
Civil Supplies minister Uttam Kumar Reddy made this announcement during a video conference held on Wednesday with district collectors.
Agriculture minister Tummala Nageswara Rao and Industries minister Sridhar Babu also participated in the meeting from different locations.
Next 20 days crucial for procurement: Uttam
Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy stressed that the next 20 days are crucial for the successful procurement of paddy.
He directed the district collectors to actively coordinate with field-level officials to ensure smooth operations. The government has prepared warehouses with a total storage capacity of 10 lakh tonnes to store the procured grain.
Paddy weighed at the purchase centres must be immediately transferred to these warehouses. In areas lacking warehouse facilities, officials have been instructed to transport the paddy directly to rice mills. The minister also urged local authorities to resolve labour-related issues on the spot to avoid any delays.
8381 procurement centres setup
To support the procurement process, the government has established 8,381 procurement centres across the state.
Additionally, 13.71 crore gunny bags are already available, with another 3.79 crore bags being procured. So far, 19.60 lakh tonnes of paddy worth Rs 4,545.72 crore have been procured, and Rs 2,289 crore has been credited directly into farmers’ bank accounts.
The government is also preparing to deposit a bonus amount of ₹444.20 crore for fine varieties of paddy into farmers’ accounts.
For this Rabi season, paddy has been cultivated on approximately 54.89 lakh acres in Telangana, with an estimated production of 127 lakh tonnes.
The government plans to procure around 70 lakh tonnes of this produce and has laid out detailed strategies to achieve this target.
Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy also assured that applications for ration cards are being carefully scrutinised to ensure that eligible applicants receive their cards promptly.
The video conference was also attended by Civil Supplies Commissioner DS Chauhan, Director Prasad, and other senior officials.
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