Bhubaneswar, Feb 23 (IANS) Amid protests launched by the opposition from the streets to the Assembly over alleged mismanagement in paddy procurement, Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari on Monday said the state government is firmly committed to protecting the dignity and honour of the “Annadata,” or farmers, in the state.
Addressing the media persons here, Pujari said, “Our government is firmly committed to protecting the dignity and honour of our ‘Annadata’, our farmer brothers and sisters. Ensuring transparency, assured income, and the right to live a life of dignity for every farmer in the state is our top priority.”
In a veiled attack on the opposition, Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari blamed previous governments for the massive mismanagement in paddy procurement at Mandis across the state. He also claimed that the state government doesn’t intend to hide the truth about the Mandi chaos.
“We concede that some initial pressure has risen due to the lack of infrastructure, concerns related to godowns in some locations, increased farmer registrations after the provision of Input Assistance, registration of more agricultural land, and a growing shift towards paddy cultivation over other crops. However, this reflects the success of our agricultural policies; farmers today trust that the government stands by them. Keeping this pressure in view, steps are being taken to strengthen infrastructure in the future,” said Pujari.
The minister said building infrastructure is time-consuming and a phased process, but the state government is planning steps to systematically strengthen the system. He detailed that 973 infrastructure development works have been initiated in Mandis as per requirements. Of these, 212 projects have already been completed, while another 466 infrastructure projects are nearing completion.
Pujari also added that as many as 100 model Mandis will be established across the state, and steps have been taken to construct warehouses with a total capacity of 5 lakh metric tonnes.
The minister noted that the state government aims to convert the current pressure into an opportunity and to build a more modern, well-equipped mandi system in the coming days.
The paddy procurement is progressing statewide in an orderly and transparent manner, with minor issues at Mandis but no chaos or delay in payment, claimed the minister.
He underscored that priority was given to small, marginal, and sharecropping farmers, followed by all other categories, including large farmers.
During KMS 2023-24 under the previous government, a total of 70.88 lakh metric tonnes of paddy was procured, benefiting 15.32 lakh farmers, while under the BJP-led government, in the current KMS 2025-26, so far, 63.46 lakh metric tonnes of paddy have already been procured in the Kharif season alone, benefiting more than 14.83 lakh farmers.
The procurement process will continue until March 31.
In KMS 2024-25, Odisha procured over 92.64 lakh tonnes of paddy, benefiting 19.73 lakh farmers, and transferred Rs 28,719 crore via DBT.
–IANS
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