Jeypore: Millers from Koraput district will not be participating in the current Rabi mandi season. After a formal written communication to this effect, the Food Supplies Department has grown concerned. Initially, permission was granted for millers from Balangir district to lift paddy from Koraput. Now, plans are being made to involve a total of 7 districts including Balangir, Ganjam, Kalahandi, Malkangiri, Nabarangpur, Rayagada, and Nuapada. The Managing Director of the Odisha State Civil Supplies Corporation (OSCSC), K. Sudarshan Chakraborty, has written to the collectors of these districts.
In the letter, MD Chakraborty has mentioned that steps are being taken to ensure timely lifting of paddy from the mandis. Each district will prepare a list of custom millers to lift paddy from Koraput. Preference will be given to millers located at a shorter distance. Millers must have a good track record, and procurement will be done following the mandi guidelines. While preparing the list, care must be taken to ensure that mandis in the respective districts are not affected.
Background:
In the current Rabi season, a target has been set to procure 8 lakh quintals of paddy from the district in the first phase. However, millers from the district have informed the Commissioner and Collector in writing that they will not lift paddy from the mandis. They have cited existing Kharif stock in godowns as a reason. In response, OSCSC has taken steps to ensure paddy lifting from the mandis by involving millers from other districts.
Although the Rabi mandi was scheduled to start on the 25th, it was postponed due to the delay in contract finalization with the millers. The mandi will commence only after agreements are signed with millers from other districts. This uncertainty has raised concerns among traders. Currently, focus is on small farmers. Once the mandi begins, large farmers will only be allowed to sell 19 quintals per acre. Traders are planning to buy the rest of the paddy outside the mandi.
Traders and Millers Become Active Post-Procurement Season
Jeypore, 265 (Bureau):
The Rabi mandi has not started yet, but traders and millers have already become active. They have begun purchasing paddy to send to Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh or to sell in nearby mandis. Due to recent rainfall, paddy prices have dropped from ₹2,100 to ₹1,800 per quintal. Traders and millers are purchasing at lower prices citing high moisture content in the paddy. Small farmers who haven’t registered with the mandi are being forced to sell at these lower prices.
Every year, traders and millers become active before the mandi opens. They start lifting paddy, especially from small farmers who haven’t registered or have taken loans for farming and lack storage facilities. The government procures paddy at ₹2,300 per quintal plus an ₹800 bonus for registered farmers. However, before the mandi opens, traders and millers manipulate local prices based on rates in Andhra Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.
This year, due to a low-pressure-induced rainfall and cloudy weather, paddy has high moisture content. As a result, traders and millers are purchasing it at ₹1,800 to ₹1,900 per quintal. Last Rabi season, the government rate was ₹2,300, while prices in Andhra and Chhattisgarh were higher, allowing farmers to sell at ₹2,500–₹2,600 per quintal. But this year the situation is different. The government’s Minimum Support Price (MSP) has increased, which traders fear may affect their business. Presently, they are focusing only on small farmers. Once the mandi opens, large farmers will be limited to selling only 19 quintals per acre, and traders plan to purchase their surplus paddy outside the mandi system.