Nagpur: Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her budget speech cited figures highlighting growth in procurement of crops at minimum support price (MSP). This included cotton, pulses and paddy — which are grown in Vidarbha also.
Reacting to the FM’s claims, farmers here said selling cotton or pulses at the procurement centres on MSP does not happen without hassles. This is followed by delayed payment, they said, also alleging that even traders manage to sell their stock at the centres.
“Procurement at the centres run by Cotton Corporation of India (CCI) was rather slow last year. There were shutdowns due to Covid lockdown,” said Nitin Khadse from Jalka village in Yavatmal.
There are similar hassles at tur procurement centres, run by National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation (Nafed). There have been instances when procurement was stopped due to shortage of gunny bags. Delayed payments remain a problem, said Khadse.
Majority of the farmers, however, also accepted that the CCI has purchased record quantity of cotton this year, which has ultimately led to open market rates going up. Rates of tur are already above the MSP this time.
If the cotton and tur growers of Western Vidarbha complained of hassles, paddy growers in the East find the system to be rather convenient.
“The procurement has been smooth, so far. The government has also announced bonus of Rs700 a quintal. This fetches paddy farmer Rs2,500 for a quintal,” said Govind Bhendarkar, an activist from Chandrapur — a paddy growing area.
Private mills engaged by the government to process paddy into rice also find it a profitable deal. The rice is later sold through the public distribution system, he said.
To Sitharaman’s statement that the amount paid towards procurement on MSP has grown over the years, activists say it was only because the rates have increased.
Activists also agreed that delayed payments have dogged procurement of cotton and tur in the region. This also gives chance to the middlemen, who purchase the produce at a discount if a farmer is in urgent need of money, they said.
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