The West Bengal government has purchased a record quantity of paddy in the ongoing kharif season. While it was less than 40 lakh quintal in the last kharif season, the purchase has crossed 41 lakh quintal in the 2020 summer. Four months of the buying season are still left. Successive disasters — COVID-19 and cyclone Amphan — are the reasons for such large-scale buying, government officials said.
“Lockdown is one of the major reasons for record buying. Farmers have limited options this year as middlemen, the conduit between big private buyers and farmers, cannot travel and stay in villages to negotiate the prices.
“Secondly, the farmers were apprehensive of price fluctuation and logistics of carrying paddy to the agro mandis [large markets]. When they got good prices from us, better than in the open market, they sold to us,” an Agro department officer said. The farmers were also unsure of the prices in the commercial market following Amphan.
Due to the slower rate of transactions, everyone is looking for cash, which also has escalated the sale. The State Cabinet had approved a proposal to buy more than 50 lakh quintal of paddy. The Agriculture department may need fresh approval if the total buying exceeds the approved buying limit.
