Chhattisgarh's paddy farmers get a firm date and a familiar guarantee: Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai announced on Wednesday, 28 October 2026, that the state's annual paddy procurement drive will open on 15 November, with the government committing to buy paddy at ₹3,100 per quintal — up to a ceiling of 21 quintals per acre. The cabinet has also cleared 360 new procurement centres to cut the distance between farmer and buyer.

What the Cabinet Decided — and Why It Matters

The Chhattisgarh Council of Ministers locked in the procurement rate at ₹3,100 per quintal, maintaining the price floor that supplements the central government's Minimum Support Price. The per-acre cap of 21 quintals applies per farmer, providing a structured ceiling that the state has held steady across seasons. For a state that ranks among India's largest paddy producers, the cabinet decision effectively sets the floor under rural incomes for the entire kharif (autumn harvest) marketing season.

CM Sai framed the announcement in plain terms: 'हमारा प्रयास है कि हर किसान बिना किसी परेशानी के अपना धान बेच सके' ('Our effort is that every farmer can sell their paddy without any trouble and receive the full benefit of their labour'). The language signals that administrative friction — long queues, redundant paperwork, distant centres — is the specific problem this round of reforms targets.

AgriStack Exemption: One Less Queue for Registered Farmers

One of the sharper operational moves: farmers who registered on the AgriStack digital platform in the previous season will not need to re-register. AgriStack, the central government's farmer-identity database, links land records, crop data, and benefit delivery into a single digital ID. Exempting already-registered holders from repeat paperwork reduces a friction point that has historically slowed procurement season openings in many states.

New farmers still need to enrol, but the rollover provision means a large share of returning sellers can proceed directly to selling. That is a concrete time-saving — not a symbolic one.

360 New Centres: Shrinking the Distance to a Payday

The expansion of procurement infrastructure by 360 new centres is the structural centrepiece of this year's drive. Chhattisgarh's paddy belt spans tribal and remote districts where travel to a government buying point can cost a farmer both time and money. More centres compress that geography. The rollout — operational readiness, staff deployment, and payment pipeline — will be the real test when procurement begins on 15 November.

Successive state administrations have used paddy procurement as the primary lever for rural income support in Chhattisgarh. The BJP government under CM Sai is continuing that playbook while layering in digital infrastructure — the AgriStack integration — that was not a factor in earlier procurement cycles. Whether the digital layer speeds up farmer payments will be the number to watch when the season closes.