Rains stall paddy harvest and procurement in lower Kangra

A prolonged wet spell has thrown paddy harvesting in Kangra district off schedule, delaying government procurement and leaving farmers anxious. Despite the State Food and Civil Supply Corporation (SFCSC) announcing procurement from October 3 across four designated centres, only two — Riyali and Milwan in Indora subdivision — have actually begun operations. The Fatehpur and Nagrota Bagwan centres, meanwhile, await both dry weather and the arrival of harvested produce.

In lower Kangra, where most of the paddy belt lies, incessant rain has kept fields waterlogged, halting harvesting activities. As a result, not a single farmer has reached the Fatehpur or Nagrota Bagwan centres with their produce yet. The two functional centres at Riyali and Milwan had just begun procurement when Monday’s showers and an orange alert for Tuesday again disrupted the process.

Jagir Singh, Area Manager of SFCSC Dharamshala, told The Tribune that the corporation has so far procured 19.0125 metric tonnes of paddy at Milwan and 4.9125 metric tonnes at Riyali till October 5. “The crop is being procured at the minimum support price of Rs 2,389 per quintal as declared by the Central Government,” he said. He added that procurement at Fatehpur and Nagrota Bagwan would commence once harvesting picks up and produce starts arriving.

The SFCSC, in collaboration with the Kangra Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee (APMC), manages procurement of both wheat and paddy in the district. APMC Secretary Shagun Sood said the committee has arranged essential facilities such as potable water, waiting rooms, toilets, electricity, parking, wooden crates and winnowing machines for grain cleaning to ease the process for farmers.

The storage capacities at Milwan, Riyali and Fatehpur centers stand at 1,100, 600, and 400 metric tonnes, respectively. Until 2023, procurement in these centres was handled by the Food Corporation of India (FCI), but since last year, the SFCSC has taken over the responsibility.