Hyderabad, Apr 9 (TNT): Telangana Irrigation and Civil Supplies Minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy on Thursday urged the Centre to enhance paddy procurement allocations and extend delivery deadlines in view of the sharp rise in paddy production in the state.
In a letter to Union Food Minister Pralhad Joshi, Uttam sought reallocation of 5 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) of boiled rice target for Rabi 2024-25 by reducing the Food Corporation of India (FCI) raw rice target.
He said 8.45 LMT of rice is yet to be delivered and requested a 60-day extension beyond the original February 28 deadline.
The Minister also sought enhancement of the boiled rice target by 20 LMT for the entire KMS 2025-26 covering both Kharif and Rabi seasons.
He further requested an additional two-month extension for Rabi 2024-25 deliveries citing pending physical verification of Kharif paddy stocks and the need for more processing time.
Uttam said Telangana has witnessed a significant rise in paddy output due to improved irrigation and farmer-centric policies, and stressed that higher procurement support is essential to protect farmers from distress sales.
He said the Centre’s reduced procurement allocations have burdened the state with excess stocks, storage costs and milling expenses.
The Minister appealed to the Union Government to consider the requests favourably in the interest of lakhs of farmers in the state.
TNT TS
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