The harvest and procurement of paddy cultivated in the additional (second) crop season are progressing in Kuttanad and other parts of Alappuzha. The Kerala State Civil Supplies Corporation (Supplyco) has procured more than 600 tonnes of paddy so far from farmers in the district.
After an initial delay, paddy procurement got off to a start on Monday. The hiccup in procurement was caused after mills decided not to purchase paddy in protest against the government’s “apathy” towards various issues raised by them. As of Wednesday, only one mill was taking part in the procurement process in Alappuzha. In the 2021 additional crop season, as many as 30 mills in the district participated.
Farmers who are upset over the slow start to procurement have sought government intervention to end the impasse. Despite intermittent showers in the district, farmers have been forced to keep the harvested paddy on polders or in the open due to the lack of proper storage facilities.
Supplyco officials said they expected more mills to join the process in the coming days. "At least two more rice millers will start lifting paddy from the district from Thursday, which will take the total number of mills to three. The harvest has just begun and only a few fields have gone under combine harvesters so far. It will take a few more days for large-scale harvesting to commence. We hope the deadlock will end soon and more mills will come forward to procure paddy," said an official.
Farmers have undertaken paddy farming on around 9,700 hectares in the additional crop season in the district, a major portion of which is in Kuttanad. Rain and waterlogging destroyed paddy cultivation in over 100 hectares in August. Further, brown planthopper infestation and leaf blight disease were reported from fields at Kainakary, Champakulam, Edathua, Nedumudi and Karuvatta, among other places, in recent weeks.
The Supplyco, through mills, is expected to procure more than 40,000 tonnes of paddy from Alappuzha in the additional crop season.
