Ranchi, Jan 12 (IANS): Paddy procurement at government centres in many districts of Jharkhand has come to a standstill, leaving thousands of farmers returning empty-handed daily.

This crisis has arisen due to storage issues at PACS (Primary Agricultural Credit Societies) and LAMPS (Large Area Multi-Purpose Societies). Overloaded warehouses are unable to accommodate more paddy, as rice millers have not been lifting stock from these centres.

Additionally, server downtime and technical glitches have further slowed the procurement process in some areas.

In districts such as Dhanbad, Hazaribagh, Garhwa, Chaibasa, Chatra, Ramgarh, Ranchi, Jamtara, Giridih, Latehar, Godda, Pakur, Deoghar, Sahibganj, Gumla, and Khunti, only 8 to 40 per cent of the targeted paddy has been purchased so far.

The Joint Secretary of the Food Supply, Public Distribution, and Consumer Affairs Department recently expressed concern in a letter to the Deputy Commissioners of 12 districts, urging immediate action to address the slow pace of procurement in the state.

In Hazaribagh, most PACS and LAMPS have stopped purchasing due to full warehouses.

BJP MLA Manoj Kumar Yadav, representing Barhi Assembly constituency, raised the issue in a letter to Chief Minister Hemant Soren. He highlighted that paddy procurement in the district has been halted for nearly a month, allowing middlemen to exploit the situation by purchasing paddy from farmers at prices far below the government rate.

Government centres offer a fixed rate of Rs 2,400 per quintal (including bonuses) for paddy. However, middlemen are reportedly paying Rs 1,800 to Rs 1,900 per quintal, further distressing farmers.

The Jharkhand government had set up 699 paddy procurement centres across the state, starting operations on December 15. The target for this year is to procure 60 lakh quintals of paddy. Despite over 2.4 lakh farmers registering to sell their produce, procurement has been halted at many centres.

This year, the government estimated a total paddy production of 41.38 lakh tonnes, cultivated over 15.48 lakh hectares. In comparison, the state produced 32.10 lakh tonnes in 2023.

Immediate intervention is required to resolve storage and logistical challenges, ensuring fair procurement for farmers and preventing further exploitation by middlemen.