DINDIGUL
Storing agricultural produce, especially grains, in government warehouses would minimise grain loss to a large extent, ensure protection of grains from pests and birds and help farmers get better prices for them, said M. Ramadas, former Deputy General Manager of Tamil Nadu Warehousing Corporation.
Delivering a technical lecture in a special training programme meant for farmers from five districts, organised by Tamil Nadu Warehousing Corporation, here on Wednesday, he said grains stocked in warehouses would be stored scientifically in order to minimise grain loss and protect them from pest attack and natural calamities.
Moreover, farmers could mortgage their produce in banks and get loans to the extent of 75% of the procurement price of agri produce at lower interest rate on submission of negotiable warehouse receipts. Warehouses had also been assisting farmers in grading their grains, he said.
Advanced technologies were available to store agricultural produce even for one year and stock even loose grains in giant size silo containers. This had brought down grain loss below 5%.
Mr. Ramadas said Tami Nadu had established 56 warehouses with a total storing capacity of 7.17 lakh tonnes. Kerala had 56 warehouses, Karnataka 137 and Andhra Pradesh 66, he added.
In his special address, Dindigul Zonal Manager of the Corporation M. Sivajothi said special training would be imparted to farmers to store their grains scientifically and stock seeds for the next season.
Later, sprayers were given to 250 farmers from Dindigul, Theni, Sivaganga, Madurai and Ramanathapuram districts.
