Bhubaneswar, Dec 3 (NationPress) The Minister for Food, Supplies and Consumer Welfare, Krushna Chandra Patra, stated on Wednesday that the government of Odisha has reformed the paddy procurement system to enhance transparency and efficiency. The new framework guarantees timely purchases at the government-mandated price, prompt payments to farmers, and effective resolution of their complaints.

In response to an adjournment motion tabled by Opposition BJD leaders during the Odisha Assembly session, Patra assured that this year's paddy procurement would be transparent and farmer-centric, aiming for efficiency statewide.

The Minister reported that the Chief Minister has appointed ministers to specific districts to tackle farmers’ issues and supervise the procurement.

He highlighted that the registration period for the current Kharif season was extended to ensure that every farmer can participate. A total of 19.68 lakh farmers have signed up to sell paddy, significantly surpassing last year’s numbers.

To facilitate a smooth procurement experience, the Minister mentioned that farmers must complete Aadhaar-based e-KYC during registration. Measures have been implemented to ensure the timely delivery of Minimum Support Price (MSP) and input assistance. He revealed that during the previous Kharif season (2024-25), 1,27,58,953 plots across 58.14 lakh acres were registered for paddy procurement.

This year (2025-26), the figures have risen to 1,38,47,796 plots encompassing 61.67 lakh acres. Additionally, 2,712 Primary Agricultural Cooperative Societies, 416 Women SHGs across 19 districts, and 6 panchayats in 3 districts have engaged in the procurement process. Awareness campaigns have been held to educate farmers about Fair Average Quality (FAQ) norms and Minimum Support Price (MSP) for paddy.

Despite a slight delay in procurement due to unseasonal rains, 2,94,569 tokens have been issued to farmers, and a total of 4,110 quintals of paddy have been procured from the districts of Bargarh, Kalahandi, and Sambalpur.

To eliminate the issue of ‘Katni Chatni’ (deduction of farmers’ produce), all procurement centers have been equipped with various grain testing machines.

Moreover, 303 AI-based Grain Analyzers have been introduced to expedite and enhance the accuracy of testing. For the convenience of farmers, 140 modern mobile paddy cleaning machines have been supplied to convert non-FAQ paddy into FAQ paddy, and Quality Analysts have been designated to hasten the quality testing process.