Kishan Reddy blames Cong for farmers’ distress

metro india news  I hyderabad

Escalating the war of words between the Centre and the Telangana Government over paddy procurement, Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy on Saturday accused the Congress government of creating a complete mess in the procurement process and then attempting to shift the blame onto the Centre.

Addressing a press conference in Hyderabad, Kishan Reddy alleged that the State Government's lack of planning, poor execution and administrative failures had pushed thousands of farmers into hardship during the ongoing Rabi procurement season. He asserted that the Centre had already agreed to procure nearly 53 lakh metric tonnes of paddy from Telangana and questioned why the State Government had failed to complete procurement despite this commitment.

The Union Minister said farmers across Telangana were forced to wait for weeks at procurement centres, exposing their produce to unseasonal rains and financial losses. He alleged that the State Government failed to make adequate arrangements for gunny bags, transportation, storage facilities and timely lifting of paddy, resulting in severe inconvenience to farmers. According to him, delays in procurement created opportunities for middlemen to exploit farmers by purchasing paddy at prices below the Minimum Support Price.

Kishan Reddy maintained that procurement operations, transportation to rice mills and coordination with agencies are primarily the responsibility of the State Government. Instead of addressing these shortcomings, he said, the Congress leadership was unfairly targeting the Centre to cover up its own failures. He also accused both the present Congress government and the previous BRS regime of repeatedly politicising paddy procurement and neglecting long term planning for the welfare of farmers.

The BJP leader further alleged that the State Government had failed to prepare for changing market conditions, particularly regarding coarse rice varieties. He said farmers were not provided suitable seeds for market oriented cultivation and that no effective strategy was developed to promote exports or create new marketing opportunities. He also criticised the government for allegedly focusing more on commissions, contracts, real estate and auctions than on resolving farmers' issues.

Highlighting the Centre's contribution, Kishan Reddy claimed that Telangana accounts for a significant share of rice supplied to the Food Corporation of India and that the Union Government has substantially increased spending on procurement in the State over the years. He reiterated that the Centre remains willing to consider an increase in procurement quotas if requested by Telangana after meeting existing targets.

He also demanded an explanation from the Congress government for not fulfilling its election promise of providing a Rs 500 bonus on multiple crops and questioned why many Rabi farmers were yet to receive the promised benefits. Calling for a comprehensive action plan, Kishan Reddy urged the State Government to hold consultations with political parties, farmer organisations and stakeholders to address procurement challenges and prevent recurring crises.

Stressing that farmers should not become victims of political blame games, the Union Minister said both the Centre and the State must work together to safeguard farmers' interests. However, he maintained that the current procurement difficulties were largely the result of the Telangana Government's ineffective planning and administrative failures rather than any lack of support from the Centre.