If it is not natural calamities, it is an inept government that creates problems for the farmers in the state, as the present deficit of storage facilities suggests. The 1,187 purchase centres are unable to house the influx of food grains.
Even as farmers across the state are ferrying their produce to the nearest grain purchasing centre, storage spaces in all the centres have been declared full. The farmers have resorted to waiting outside the purchase centre with their grain-laden trucks.
Unable to cope with the influx of grains, the government has declared holidays for the grain purchasing centres and mills, and the farmers have been asked to refrain from bringing in their grains till the stocks in the governmental granaries are sold.
Due to the abundance of food grains, the farmers were forced to sell their produce at prices
well below the Minimum Support Price (MSP).
Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy had reportedly asked the Centre, while in New Delhi on Friday, to fund the construction of new granaries in the state.
In the meantime, the farmers must hold on to their grains, and hope for the best.
Following the pressure exerted by political parties in the state, the state government on May 4th decided to permit the export of raw and boiled rice for a period for 2 months, in an effort to ensure that the farmers get the MSP for their produce.