Rs 9,789 cr credited to farmers’ accounts

Guntur: Minister for Food, Civil Supplies & Consumer Affairs Dr Nadendla Manohar said that against the target of 50 lakh metric tonnes set by the Central government for the kharif season, the state has so far procured 41.27 lakh metric tonnes of paddy from 6,76,848 farmers.

He stated that Rs 9,789 crore has already been directly credited into farmers’ bank accounts and, by the time of the Sankranti festival, paddy procurement payments exceeding Rs 10,000 crore will be completed.

Addressing a media conference at his camp office in Tenali on Tuesday, he said direct payments to farmers’ accounts are being credited within 24 to 48 hours of sale. He said that paddy procurement has been completed up to 98 per cent in the twin Godavari districts and 97 per cent in Kakinada district. Recalling figures from the last year of the YSRCP government, Dr Nadendla Manohar said that only 288 metric tonnes of paddy were procured from 29 farmers in the Tenali constituency, with payments totalling Rs 63 lakh. In contrast, this year the coalition government has so far procured 23,463 metric tonnes from 3,884 farmers and credited Rs 51.76 crore directly into farmers’ accounts within 24 hours. He said that nearly 78 per cent of farmers received payments within four hours. Despite the government’s progress, YSRCP president Jagan Mohan Reddy continues to indulge in unnecessary political criticism and misinformation regarding the Amaravati capital, he alleged.

He asserted that Amaravati is the true identity andpride of Guntur district.