Bhubaneswar: The Centre has agreed to procure an additional six lakh mt of rice from Odisha following a request made by the state government.
This was stated by Odisha’s Food Supplies Minister Krushna Chandra Patra on Thursday. The state government has been urging the Centre to procure the surplus rice as warehouses are full.
He said the Centre has agreed to procure six lakh mt of rice, including five lakh mt of boiled rice, from Odisha by April.
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he state has surplus rice of seven lakh mt. The remaining one lakh mt of rice will be sold through auction, the Minister added.
The Centre usually procures around 50 lakh mt of rice from Odisha, officials said.
Patra said paddy procurement is underway in 18 of 30 districts, and the state has secured 10.50 lakh MT of paddy from around 2.30 lakh farmers during the ongoing kharif season. The government has paid a total of Rs 2,350 crore to the farmers as MSP and input assistance for the procured paddy, he said.
Paddy procurement will continue till March, and the government will buy paddy from all registered farmers.
During a review meeting held on Wednesday evening, the Minister instructed officers to expedite the procurement process by adopting all transparent measures. He also stressed taking appropriate action over allegations of irregularities.