SHRI SHARAD YADAV CONDEMNS BHUBANESHWAR AIRPORT INCIDENT
Shri Sharad Yadav,
Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution expressed
distress at the unprovoked incident at Bhubaneshwar airport on
13th June, 2003 where he was mobbed and manhandled
by some miscreants. While condemning the incident he stated that
this was not a genuine protest of farmers and this incident was
otherwise motivated.
The Government
of India, through the Food Corporation of India (FCI), the first
time had opened 20 procurement centres in the paddy growing areas
of the State from the commencement of the procurement season on
1st November, 2002 itself. The FCI had specially deputed
officers from outside the State to man the centres. In the past
the FCI had been purchasing only levy rice from the millers. Due
to drought conditions in the state this year, the Kharif crop
was poor and the grain was of poor quality and in spite of the
best efforts of the FCI, paddy of the requisite quality was not
available for purchase. The FCI has been monitoring the situation
throughout the season and there have been no complaints from farmers
with regard to the distress sale of paddy.
The Rabi paddy
has been harvested only recently. The State Government made a
representation to the Centre to relax the specifications of paddy.
The Ministry of Food deputed a team to Orissa on 2nd
June and on the recommendation of the team issued relaxations
in the specifications of paddy to mitigate the hardship of farmers
in the State.
Now, paddy containing
damaged and discoloured grain upto 5% and immature, shrunken and
shrivelled grain up to 5% is being procured in Orissa against
the previous limit of 3%. All the paddy purchase centres are fully
geared to procure paddy from the farmers.
