Paddy procurement: Uttam directs officials to ensure prompt payment

Hyderabad: Irrigation and Civil Supplies Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy has instructed officials to ensure prompt payments, adequate storage and transportation, and continuous field supervision by Collectors during the paddy procurement .

“Procurement is a sensitive process that must run smoothly from purchase to payment. Every grain must be safeguarded and every farmer must be paid on time,” he said.

Telangana has achieved a new milestone in paddy procurement, with 8.54 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) purchased so far during the Kharif 2025–26 season - more than twice the 3.94 LMT recorded at the same time last year.

The minister directed all Collectors to remain in high alert mode to handle any adverse weather condition and take preventive steps to protect all crops --paddy, maize and cotton --from damage. He said farmers had only recently recovered from the cyclone, and the new system demanded preparedness. “Officials must act with speed and caution. No farmer should face losses due to rain or procedural delay,” he emphasised.

Uttam instructed all districts to accelerate procurement and move stocks quickly to rice mills. He also directed officials to provide tarpaulins at all procurement centres to protect stored grain and to share daily weather bulletins with farmers so they could safeguard their harvested paddy.

In case of rain, drenched paddy should be shifted immediately to boiled rice mills, with proposals sent for allocation under the boiled rice quota. Furthermore, he asked Collectors to ensure adequate godown space and engage local labour to prevent any disruption in the procurement process.

Uttam Kumar Reddy cautioned against false narratives being circulated about procurement progress.