Chhattisgarh misses paddy procurement target, sets purchase record

Chhattisgarh missed the target set for paddy procurement in the kharif marketing season 2024-25, though it set a new purchase record.

 

A state government spokesperson said over 14.9 million tonnes (mt) of paddy has been purchased at minimum support price (MSP) from farmers in the state till January 31, 2025. The purchase, at the 2,739 procurement centres set up across the state, started on November 15, 2024. 

 

Unconfirmed reports said the state could extend the date since many farmers failed to sell their yield. Of the 2.77 million registered farmers, 2.54 million sold their produce, for which Rs 31,089 crore was paid to them under the bank linking system, the spokesperson said.

 

The state government had set the target of purchasing 16 mt of paddy during the season. Last year, 14.49 mt of paddy was procured in the state during the corresponding period. The spokesperson said, although it had failed to meet the target, the state had set a new record of paddy purchase in Chhattisgarh.

 

Chhattisgarh is paying Rs 3,100 for a quintal of paddy, of which the farmers are getting Rs 800 as input subsidy besides the MSP of Rs 2,300 per quintal. Given the attractive return, agriculture experts were anticipating that the target could be achieved easily. However, crop production was affected in a few pockets across the state 

 

“Though the exact cause could not be known, there are chances of imbalance in the source-sink relationship,” a senior scientist at the Indira Gandhi Agriculture University said. A balance in “source-sink relationship” is crucial for paddy production as it directly impacts the amount of photosynthate (sugars) produced by the leaves (source) and the capacity of the developing grains (sink) to utilise these sugars.

 

It ultimately determines the final rice yield and if the source cannot adequately supply the sink, grain filling will be limited, resulting in reduced paddy production. Despite good rainfall, cloudy weather may have caused photosynthetic inefficiency, the scientist said.

 

The farmers said they got productivity of 19 to 22 quintals per acre this year. They had harvested 24 to 26 quintals last year. The experts said detailed research could reveal how productivity was affected in some areas of the state.