CM to launch e-kharid portal on Sept 27

Sushil Manav

Advertisement

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 20

The state government is set to launch on September 27 its e-kharid portal for procurement of paddy in the upcoming procurement season starting on October 1.

Sources said the portal would be launched by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and Union Minister for Food and Public Distribution Ram Bilas Paswan from either Karnal or Ambala.

J Ganesan, Chief Administrator of the Haryana State Agriculture Marketing Board (HSAMB), said 34,000 registered arhtiyas (grain market traders) registered in all 192 grain markets had been provided with login and passwords to work on the portal.

“We have done end-to-end computerisation in the purchase system. The moment a trolley of paddy enters a grain market, an electronically generated gate pass will be issued to the farmer. Details will automatically be displayed on the account of the arhtiya whose name the farmer has mentioned while getting the gate pass. After that, the trader will generate the mandatory forms (J form and I form) electronically and the application will also generate statement of crops procured through his firm,” Ganesan said. He said unless a farmer had obtained the electronically generated gate pass, no further process will be possible and even the government agencies would not be in a position to make payment.

Sources said the new system would help check evasion of market fees and other taxes. Responding to the traders’ claims that it would hinder the pace of procurement, Ganesan said all arrangements were in place for smooth conduct of procurement. “We are opening facilitation centres with two computers each in all grain markets so that traders without computers can conduct their business . Hand-held devices will be pressed into service at mandis to issue gate passes,” he said.