BJP, Cong flag paddy procurement delay in Odisha

The opposition BJP and the Congress on Friday expressed concern over the delay in procurement of paddy, which is causing "hardships" for farmers across Odisha.

The issue was raised by Leader of Opposition Pradipta Naik of the BJP during the zero hour.

"Although processing fees are charged from the farmers, paddy procurement has not been done so far. This has resulted in paddy stocks in the mandis getting germinated due to rain," Naik said.

He also claimed that many farmers in Sambalpur district have not even been paid after procuement of paddy.

Congress Legislature Party leader Narasigha Mishra alleged that the state government has shown negligence as far as paddy procurement is concerned.

BJP MLA Jayanarayan Mishra urged the Speaker to direct the officials concerned to look into the matter at the earliest.

Agriculture Minister Arun Kumar Sahoo had recently said the Odisha government has already procured 65 lakh metric ton of paddy against its target of 55 lakh metric ton this year.