A number of factors, including the early release of Cauvery water from Mettur dam and a promise of MSP for all Kharif crops ahead of sowing, have boosted the farmers’ confidence for a bountiful harvest in the Kharif marketing season
Representational image. PTI
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has urged the Centre to advance the procurement of paddy by one month and commence it from 1 September instead of 1 October to safeguard farmers’ interests.
The chief minister has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting to issue suitable instructions to the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare in this regard.
A favourable agricultural season
A number of factors have boosted the farmers’ confidence and thus the state government’s for a bountiful harvest in the Kharif marketing season.
The chief minister said in his letter that “normally, the paddy harvesting season in late September or early October would coincide with both southwest monsoon and northeast monsoon leading to yield loss or massive crop damage due to inundation during cyclones”.
However, this year the early release of Cauvery water from Mettur dam on 24 May, instead of the conventional 12 June, has turned fruitful for the farmers of Delta districts in Tamil Nadu.
“…For the first time since Independence, the Mettur reservoir has been opened for Kuruvai Paddy cultivation on May 24, 2022, ahead of the conventional date of June 12. Due to the judicious use of irrigation water during the last paddy season, and due to beneficial rains, the storage position of Mettur reservoir is quite comfortable this year,” wrote Stalin.
According to The Indian Express, the state government itself had issued orders on 8 April to take up desilting work of the main canals and sub-canals for a length of 4,964.11 km in the Cauvery Delta districts at an outlay of Rs 80 crore and sanctioned an agricultural input package worth Rs 61 crore to the farmers of the region.
The DMK leader said that the seeds of high-yielding paddy varieties and fertilisers have already been mobilised in all relevant places and farmers have been advised to complete the transplantation of Kuruvai paddy before June end.
Due to these “proactive steps” taken by the state government, farmers are confident of harvesting their ‘Kuruvai’ (short term) paddy crop commencing from the last week of August, 2022.
Stalin also thanked PM Modi for announcing the MSP for all Kharif crops well before the commencement of sowing.
The new Minimum Support Price (MSP) announced by the Centre for Kharif Marketing Season (KMS), 2022 would be applicable from 1 October, 2022 onwards.
The revised MSP for paddy in 2021-2022 is INR1,940 for common variety and INR1,960 for Grade ‘A’ variety.
“The order of the Government of India to procure Paddy from 1st September would immensely help farmers of Tamil Nadu to fetch remunerative price for Paddy and realise the benefit of increased MSP for the Kharif Marketing Season,” he said.
With inputs from agencies
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