Assam: 53% of Paddy Procured in State

Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI: Four agencies have procured 3,94,146 MT of paddy from 39,577 farmers of Assam at the minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 2183 per quintal in both kharif marketing seasons (KMS)—crop I and crop II—in 2023–24. The achievement is 53.09 percent of the procurement target of 7,42,400 MT of paddy.

The agencies procured 3,14,937 MT in the first crop season against the procurement target of 6,53,700 MT, registering a procurement of 48.17 percent. In the second crop season, the agencies procured 79,209 MT against the procurement target of 88,700 MT, registering a procurement of 89.30 percent.

The paddy procurement for the first crop season started on December 1, 2023, and concluded on June 30, 2024. The procurement in the second crop season that started in July ended on September 30, 2024.

The breakup of paddy procurement by the four agencies is: (i)271061.02 MT (57.83 percent) against the target of 4,68,700 MT in the first crop by AFCSCL (Assam Food and Civil Supplies Corporation Ltd), and 67943 MT in the second against the target of 68900 MT (98.61 percent); (ii) 3503.78 MT (70.07 percent) against the target of 5,000 MT by ASAMB (Assam State Agricultural Marketing Board) in the first crop, and 1858 MT (37.16 percent) against target of 5,000 MT in the second crop; (iii) 12100.24 MT (15.92 percent) against the target of 76,000 MT by FCI in the first crop, and 1,167 MT (28.9 percent) against the target of 4,000 MT in the second crop; and (iv) 28272.51 MT (27.18 percent) against the target of 1,04,000 MT by NAFED (National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd) in the first crop, and 8250.98 (64.46 percent) against the target of 12800 MT in the second crop.

According to sources in the Agriculture Department, the state has a total of 70,136 certified farmers who have registered to sell paddy. However, only 39,577 of the registered certified farmers sold their paddy during both seasons. Thus, 56.42 percent of registered farmers sold their paddy.

Also read: Assam: Cachar district administration vows for paddy sales at Rs 2300 MSP on Kati Bihu

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