Farmers facing hardship in selling agricultural produce

BAGAHA: Farmers of Bagaha sub-division are facing untold hardships in selling their agricultural produce, especially paddy, at the minimum support price (MSP) fixed by the state government in the absence of paddy procurement centre.
Economically crippled farmers are being forced to sell paddy at the rate of Rs 950 to Rs 1,050 per quintal to undertake their Rabi and sugarcane cultivation.Though the state government had given approval to primary agriculture co-operative societies (PACS) and State Food Corporation (SFC) to open additional procurement centres, where farmers can sell paddy at the government-announced MSP rate of Rs 1,250 to Rs 1,280 per quintal, the local PACS and SFC are showing no interest in opening centres. They are making dilly delaying tactics to delay paddy procurement.
Sub-divisional magistrate (SDM), Bagaha, Animesh Kumar Parasar recently convened a meeting of PACS chairpersons as well as State Food Corporation officials in his office chamber and directed them to open paddy procurement centres but about two weeks elapsed since the meeting, they have not begun exercise for paddy procurement.
A progressive farmer, Rajkumar Gupta, native of Malakauli (Bagaha), alleged that the local PACS and the SFC were reluctant to purchase paddy from the farmers on the pretext of shortage of godown. One of the PACS chairpersons, preferring anonymity said, "The paddy now huge moisture. Hence, it will cause loss to the PACS. We will start purchasing after December when some moisture evaporates."
Taking advantage, local middlemen are purchasing paddy at a comparatively low rate. When the PACS and the SFC will start purchasing, the same middlemen will sell paddy at minimum support price. Ramashankar Dubey, president, block Congress Committee, Bagaha-2nd, flayed the district administration for taking no steps towards opening up paddy purchase centres.
Farmers in Bagaha sub-division are also dismayed over the state government's failure to announce MSP for sugarcane for the current season. Every year, the state government used to announce MSP for sugarcane in the last week of October or first week of November. But this year, the sugarcane MSP is yet to be announced, whereas sugar mills have already began crushing of sugar canes.
Cold wave: Chilling cold coupled with westerly wind sweeping for the last seven days have forced people, especially old and the children to confine indoors. All long route trains running on Gorakhpur-Narakatiaganj section of Samastipur rail division are running abnormally late. The administration has made no arrangement of bonfire at any of the roundabouts of Bagaha town.