Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) Charuni has written a letter to Union Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister Narendra Singh Tomar, demanding an early start to paddy procurement this year. The union is requesting that procurement begins from September 15 instead of the current date of October 1.
According to the paddy procurement policy of the central government, procurement traditionally commences on October 1. However, BKU Charuni argues that this is considered very late in the states of Haryana and Punjab. In the letter, the union explains that when the procurement policy was established, it was based on the cultivation of traditional country seed that took 100 to 120 days to ripen. However, with the prevalence of hybrid seeds among farmers today, the crop cycle has shortened to 85 to 90 days. As a result, the crops are ready for the market in the second week of September.
BKU Charuni claims that the current procurement policy causes significant financial losses for farmers. Due to the late start of procurement, a large portion of the farmers’ paddy is procured by private traders at lower prices, leaving the farmers in an economic crisis. To address this issue, the union has requested the Union agriculture minister to amend the paddy procurement policy and start procurement from September 15.
The Kurukshetra deputy commissioner has also received a similar letter from BKU Charuni, reinforcing the union’s demand.
In conclusion, the Bharatiya Kisan Union Charuni is urging the Union agriculture minister to revise the paddy procurement policy to start procurement by September 15 instead of October 1. The union claims that the late start of procurement leads to financial losses for farmers who are forced to sell their crops at lower prices to private traders. By aligning the procurement dates with the current crop cycle, the union believes that farmers will be able to avoid economic crises and secure better prices for their produce.
