The Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution has accepted the TS government’s request to extend the period for milling of paddy and delivery of custom-milled rice into the central pool till May 31 for the Rabi crop of 2020-21.
A communication to this effect has been sent from the Ministry to the TS Commissioner of Civil Supplies here on Wednesday, informed Union Minister for Tourism, Culture and Development of Northeast G. Kishan Reddy.
The Ministry said that “no more extensions” will be granted and it will be the responsibility of the State government to dispose off the remaining custom-milled rice.
The Food Corporation of India (FCI) has been directed to ensure that the custom-milled rice found available during the physical verification will only be accepted in the Central pool stock. Hence, the FCI should ensure there is field monitoring for delivery of the balance of rice mill wise as per the planned schedule to be obtained from the State government agencies in writing.
Age test may also be conducted at the time of the rice delivery as per the protocol devised by the FCI, said the communication signed by under secretary Jai Prakash.
Mr. Kishan Reddy thanked Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Piyush Goyal for acceding to the TS government’s request for extension of the procurement period.
The Tourism Minister reminded that the extension is being done for the “seventh time” as the last deadline was April 30, 2022, and he too had personally requested Mr. Goyal on this issue in an official communication.
“Farmers benefitting from the procurement operations in TS have increased from 5.35 lakh in the 2015-16 Kharif marketing season to more than 21.65 lakh now and extension of period for procurement will help more as there is a shortage of processing units,” Mr. Reddy informed the Minister.
He hoped that the TS government will take advantage of the opportunity given and supply the remaining amount of rice in a timely manner.
