Overview
- Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, in a Tuesday video conference, told district collectors to complete rabi procurement by the end of May and warned of disciplinary or criminal action for lapses.
- Shortages of trucks, gunny bags, and loading labor, along with slow unloading at mills, have left sacks piling up at purchase centers and triggered farmer protests including sack burnings in Yadadri Bhongir and Nalgonda.
- The government moved to ease bottlenecks by ordering tarpaulins for weather protection, temporary storage in farmer markets and function halls, and immediate receipts at loading to curb weight-deduction disputes.
- Transport officials were told to make more vehicles available and to act against contractors who fail to supply lorries, while officers are being posted at IKP procurement points and rice mills to monitor operations.
- In district-level enforcement, Nalgonda’s collector ordered mills to unload government lorries within 12 hours and barred mills from prioritizing private grain, as maize growers elsewhere reported prolonged delays and losses against the minimum support price; next door, Andhra Pradesh reported an 18% rise in rabi procurement with GPS-tracked trucks and ample gunny bags.