The procurement would continue to take place as before, at existing MSP, as per the MoU signed between the Telangana government and FCI (Food Corporation of India), an official release quoted the spokesperson as saying. A spokesperson of the Centre"s Department of Food and Public Distribution said all paddy procurements in Telangana are continuing. The Centre was not ready to buy paddy in the summer crop season and the Union Minister stated that it was impossible to convey the annual target, Niranjan Reddy said in a release. State Agriculture Minister S Niranjan Reddy and other state ministers, who met Union Minister for Food and Public Distribution Piyush Goyal in Delhi on Friday night over the issue, expressed "disappointment" over the meeting. Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, along with cabinet colleagues, has recently held a dharna here over the issue. The TRS government has been demanding that the Centre announce the annual target for paddy procurement from Telangana. Their demands include immediate purchase of paddy presently lying in the fields, purchase of wet paddy (due to rains) for Minium Support Price, providing compensation to farmers for paddy which started sprouting due to rains and announcement of the government"s stance over summer crop, the PCC president said. "Started two days #VariDeeksha at DharnaChowk today demanding the Central and state governments to procure paddy immediately and give relief to the dying farmers "Farmers lives matter to us all," Revanth Reddy tweeted. State Congress president and MP A Revanth Reddy, other party MPs from Telangana N Uttam Kumar Reddy and Komatireddy Venkata Reddy, along with senior party leaders, participated in the "Vari Deeksha" (paddy protest).
Hyderabad, Nov 27 (PTI) With the ruling TRS and BJP continuing to engage in a war of words over paddy procurement in the state, the Congress in Telangana on Saturday began a two-day protest here, demanding that the state and Central governments procure paddy immediately to provide relief to farmers.