Fix ₹3,000/quintal as paddy procurement price: Anbumani Ramadoss

PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss urges Tamil Nadu government to increase paddy procurement price to ₹3,000 per quintal.

PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss on Monday said the State government should increase the incentive and fix ₹3,000 as the price at which one quintal of paddy is procured rather than the present price of ₹2,450. He also urged the government to ensure that the volume of paddy procured is not less than what it was in 2023-24.

In a statement, Dr. Anbumani said the procurement volume decreased by 21% (34.96 lakh tonnes) in 2023-24 (as of August 31) when compared to 44.22 lakh tonnes procured in 2022-23.

“The continuous decline in direct paddy procurement in Tamil Nadu over the past few years is a matter of concern. For the 2022-23 period, the target was set to procure 58 lakh tonnes of paddy. However, only 44.22 lakh tonnes were actually procured, which is just 76% of the target. Out of the 120 lakh tonnes of paddy cultivated that year, only 36.85% was procured from the farmers,” he said.

He added that while the reduction in procurement could be attributed to the inadequate release of water from the Cauvery River affecting Kuruvai crops and the reduced cultivation area for Samba and Thaladi crops, these factors could not fully justify the decline.

“Taking these into consideration, the target for paddy procurement in 2023-24 was reduced to 50 lakh tonnes, but even this target was not achieved. Only 69.92% of the target was met, which is lower than the 76% achieved in the previous year. It is important to identify and address the reasons for the decline in direct paddy procurement in Tamil Nadu,” he said, adding that the area under paddy cultivation had been shrinking due to the non-profitability of paddy farming.

He said that while farmers’ have demanded ₹3,000/quintal, only₹2450 was being offered, which included the Central government’s fixed price of ₹2,320, with an incentive of ₹130.