Centre Agrees To Clear Telangana's Paddy Stocks

In a major development, the Centre has reportedly agreed to lift the pending stocks of paddy from Telangana.

A team of Telangana ministers and MPs including S Niranjan Reddy, G Kamalakar and E Dayakar Rao (ministers), and K Keshava Rao, Nama Nageshwar Rao and others (MPs) met Union Agriculture Minister Piyush Goyal and sought a written reply to the state about its paddy and rice stocks.

Speaking to media persons in New Delhi later, Reddy said that there was no controversy any more as Goyal had agreed to clear the stocks from the state.

The minister said that they had urged Goyal to clear the stocks lying in the FCI godowns by pressing in more rail racks. Goyal then instructed the Railways Minister to give more rail racks to lift the grains from the state, the ministers said.

Goyal reportedly also clarified to the Telangana lawmakers that the Centre would not procure parboiled rice in Yasangi. The state's farmers would need to take up other crops, he said.

Reddy said that the union minister had promised to avoid any further delay in lifting the pending stocks from the FCI godowns, and had instructed the officials to take immediate measures.

"However, we urged the Centre for a written reply on the same, and Goyal sought one or two days' time," Reddy said. "We are staying in Delhi to get the written reply from Goyal."