The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Chengam ryots have to make do with meagre rate for paddy

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Dec 12, 2007
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Chengam ryots have to make do with meagre rate for paddy

Staff Reporter

‘Mandi’ owners pay them in advance for their produce

Photo : D. Gopalakrishnan

Less-than satisfactory returns: Paddy bags being loaded from one of the ’Mandis’ at Chengam. —

CHENGAM: Farmers at Chengam in Tiruvannamalai district are happy with the yield of paddy this year. Yet, they are dissatisfied with the rate offered for their produce at ‘mandis’ here.

A cross-section of farmers says paddy cultivation peaks during the period from November to January. The yield is satisfactory, yet it is far less than that of last year. The farmers blame it on insufficient rain.

Kalambur near Aarani is said to produce high quality paddy. The paddy grown at Chengam, to some extent, stands comparison with the Kalambur paddy.

The paddy is sold to the 40 ‘mandis’ at Chengam. The rate is fixed based on the quality. The high quality variety rules at Rs.700 for 75 kg. The second grade fetches Rs.600-Rs.650.

Enquiries reveal the ‘mandi’ owners often take the farmers for a ride. Some of the farmers are unwilling to protest, as the ‘mandi’ owners help them at times of financial crisis. The farmers are paid in advance for their produce. As a result, each owner has a list of committed farmers from whom they procure paddy.

The farmers say the problem can’t be solved unless the government fixes a standard rate for their produce. Some non-governmental organisations are willing to help the farmers by procuring the produce during the lean season at a higher rate.

The NGOs are confident of reselling at a much higher rate to private parties during the peak season. The NGOs plan to use the money thus realised for various social services.

What they need is a place for storage.

Every day during the peak cultivation period, the ‘mandis’ sell an average of 300 bags of paddy procured from 50 villages surrounding Chengam to wholesale dealers. The rate may go up during the Pongal season. The farmers say the wholesale traders from Kallakuruchi, Salem, Krishnagiri and Dharmapuri sell the paddy to private rice mills at Salem, Tirupur and Coimbatore at a higher rate.

The ‘mandi’ owners get commission from both farmers as well as the wholesale traders. The commission charged for a bag is anywhere between 8 per cent and 10 per cent. As the commission tends to be high, the farmers have never resorted to desperate selling.

Some farmers say they sell only half of their produce in November and December to pay off their debts, and dispose of the other half during the peak season in January, as they get a higher rate.

“Our lot of the farmers will improve only if the government fixes a standard rate,” the farmers point out.

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