Bhubaneswar: The State Government has so far distributed Rs 2,039 crore input assistance to farmers selling paddy to the government in additional to the MSP worth Rs 5862 crore.
According to official sources, the amount is being credited to the farmers’ bank accounts on DBT mode within 48 hours.
At present, paddy procurement is going on in 27 districts. Till date, 5,34,410 farmers from Angul, Balasore, Bargarh, Bhadrak, Bolangir, Boudh, Cuttack, Deogarh, Gajapati, Ganjam, Jajpur, Jharsuguda, Kalahandi, Kandhamal, Keonjhar, Khordha, Koraput, Malkangiri, Mayurbhanj, Nabarangpur, Nuapada, Puri, Rayagada, Sambalpur, Subarnapur and Sundargarh districts have been provided minimum support price along with input assistance.
So far, about Rs 5,862 crore has been paid as minimum support price and around Rs 2,039 crore as input assistance. Notably, payment is being processed on public holidays including Sundays, the officials said.
The paddy procurement process has been accelerated in the state this kharif season. Necessary steps have been taken at the government level to ensure that registered farmers are not left out of the process.
In every mandi, officials have been appointed for the benefit of farmers and are keeping a close watch on procurement.
To ensure payment within 48 hours, a three level approval process is practiced for paying MSP and Input Assistance to farmers ensuring each farmer gets its due.
Similarly, the government has laid down SOPs wherein a team of technical experts and officials from government are continuously monitoring the procurement operations on a 24 hour basis.
A technical team of 15 persons in two shifts are engaged to monitor procurement operations within stipulated time set by the government. The team ensures the registration of Bank Accounts and validating the same through the Public Financial Management System (PFMS) platform before Paddy procurement by technical team.
Besides, a secured platform has been designed for the same by the government in coordination with the Banks to transfer payment daily. Feedback of each farmer is being monitored upon payment through the State Call centre.