In view of the bumper paddy production this season and its decision to procure entire produce put for sale by farmers under minimum support price, the State government has permitted Telangana State Cooperative Marketing Federation (TS-Markfed) to raise ₹8,000 crore loan from National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) for procurement.
In the orders issued on Tuesday, the government asked Markfed to obtain the credit and transfer it to Telangana State Civil Supplies Corporation (TSCSCL). The State government has already notified Markfed as the additional nodal agency for paddy procurement to purchase 45 lakh tonnes of paddy from farmers this rabi marketing season.
The State government has already allowed TSCSCL to raise ₹25,000 crore loans from nationalised banks for paddy procurement with an assurance to stand guarantee for the loans.
Secretary (Agriculture) B. Janardhan Reddy said the amount would be utilised by TSCSCL as inter-corporate loan from Markfed for procurement of paddy and the loan amount would be repaid along with interest by the corporation. The Markfed has been told to raise the loan for one year period. The government has also agreed to stand guarantee to the loan subject to payment of 2% guarantee commission.
