Shift to pulses, oilseeds: Telangana minister to farmers

HYDERABAD: In a significant move, agriculture minister S Niranjan Reddy has written an open letter to farmers of the state, requesting them not to cultivate paddy during the ensuing rabi season and instead shift to less expensive, high-income generating pulses and oilseeds.
Training his guns at the Centre in the eight-page letter in Telugu, he stated that the NDA government is issuing inconsistent statements on paddy purchase and the staple’s cultivation in the state on different occasions.
“TRS government has recognised the central government’s and the state BJP unit’s double standards, thus we have been sensitising farmers for the past six months to move to alternate crops,” he said in the letter released on Thursday.
Taking note of Union agriculture minister Narendra Singh Tomar’s written reply and food and civil supplies minister Piyush Goyal’s statement, the state agriculture minister stated, “At one point, the Centre says it will not take parboiled rice, and agriculture minister says there is no embargo on farmers not to cultivate paddy, confusing the farmers in the state.”
According to Niranjan Reddy, the Centre has not lifted the stock from the state for the past one year. “FCI is creating obstacles by not sending rail racks,” he said.
“I appeal to the farmers in the state to kindly note these discrepancies in the central government’s statements and attitude and convert to more income-generating crops instead of expecting the Centre to buy paddy,” he said.
Niranjan Reddy stated that the NDA government is issuing inconsistent statements on paddy purchase and staple’s cultivation in the state on different occasions