Bhubaneswar: In order to bring more transparency in the paddy procurement process, the State Government has asked all Collectors to install CCTVs in the paddy procurement yards in their respective districts.
Registrar of Cooperative Societies has recently written a letter to all the Collector (except Bolangir Collector) for installation of CCTV cameras in Paddy Procurement Centers (PPCs) under their jurisdiction. Bolangir has already installed CCTV in its all PPCs.
In pursuance to the recommendation of the Departmentally Related Standing Committee of Odisha Legislative Assembly (OLA), the Cooperation Department has asked the Collectors to install CCTV cameras in all the PPCs.
The Divisional Deputy Registrar of Cooperative Societies has been asked to coordinate with the District Administration for installation of CCTV Cameras.
On 28 August 2023, out of 3463 proposed PPCs in the State, CCTV Cameras have been Procured/installed against 1056 PPCs. Procurement/installation of CCTV Cameras for rest 2407 PPCs has not been made till date, the Registrar said in his letter.
Similarly, 36 PPCs where CCTV cameras have been installed previously are not functioning at present.
In this backdrop, the Collectors have been directed to intervene in the matter and ensure installation of CCTV Cameras in all PPCs and repair of non-functional CCTV Cameras for the ensuing kharif Paddy procurement season (KMS-2023-24) which is going to start very shortly.
According to official data, CCTVs have been installed in all 158 PPCs in Bolangir district while in Ganjam CCTV cameras have not been installed in any of the PPC. There are 372 PPCs in the Ganjam district and there is no CCTV camera in any of the centres.
Similar conditions are also in Jagatsinghpur district. Of 105 PPCs, CCTV cameras are not there in any of the Paddy Procurement Centre in the district. In Nayagarh district also CCTV cameras have not been installed in any PPC till now.
In Kandhamal and Jajpur district, such cameras have been installed in only one PPC each while the performance of Boudh, Angul, Gajapati, Koraput, Malkangiri, Nuapada and Sambalpur districts are also very poor.
The procurement of paddy (Kharif Crop) will start from the first week of November in the State and close on March 31, 2024. Like past several years, Odisha State Civil Supplies Corporation (OSCSC) will procure the surplus paddy of farmers through cooperative societies, women SHGs and Pani Panchayats by way of payment of Minimum Support Price (MSP).
This Kharif season, the Government has decided that all plots registered in the “Farmer Registration Module“ will be verified through the satellite imagery for all 30 districts of the State, the way it was done for the 17 Rabi paddy procuring districts in the KMS 2022-23 (Rabi crop).
The satellite survey data on the suspected plots will be shared with the DRCS/ARCS for further validation at their level through ORSAC land survey mobile application and portal.