Kalahandi admin welcomes other distrct millers to procure paddy for Rabi season.

Surjit Kumar Dhal, Bhawanipatna, May 21: The Kalahandi district administration has asked the outside millers to procure paddy due to non-cooperation of rice millers within the district.

The Rabi paddy procurement targeted for 20 lakh quintals this year and scheduled to start on May 15, is yet to begin and the last date of lifting the paddy has been targeted on June 30.

District Civil Supply Officer Shiba Prasad Dora said 51 Primary Agriculture Cooperative Societies (PACS) will open 81 paddy purchase centres (PCCs) including some SHGs and 60 millers had entered into an agreement to lift paddy from the PCCs. However, only 7 millers have given their bank guarantee and rest of them withdrawn.

“Despite giving their consent to participate in the procurement process, the millers are not coming forward to execute the agreement on the plea of their demands,” he added.
Dora further said that the administration has taken consent from other districts millers who will tag all the paddy within one month.

On the other hand, president of Kalahandi District Rice Millers Association, Nalini Patjoshi said the association had submitted their eleven point charter of demands to the State Government, which is yet to look into it.

He alleged that the central government (central warehousing corporation) is not ready to pay rice custody, maintenance and transportation charges, millers are incurring heavy financial loss.

He said as far as custody and maintenance charge for rice is concerned, the millers were paid Rs 7.20 per quintal of paddy and on loading charges Rs 6/- were paid last year. But the government is yet to assure in written that they will pay all the charges after lifting paddy.

Meanwhile, the departmental audit has found loopholes in the Civil supply office of the district where custom millers had claimed excess amount on transportation and other charges.

The CSO said that Rs 99,38,575 has been recovered out of Rs 1,24,23,019 from the millers who had shown extra amount of bills for the Kharif season 2018-19.

President of Millers Association, Nailini Pattjoshi denied the allegation and said that they have asked the state government to re-audit it.