Urging the district administration to open direct purchase centres (DPCs) for procuring paddy, farmers dumped paddy on the Erode – Karur main road at Solangapalayam on Friday.
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About 15,743 acres are irrigated by Kalingarayan canal in the Erode, Modakkurichi and Kodumudi taluks in the district and paddy, sugarcane, turmeric and banana are cultivated as major crops throughout the year. Currently, farmers have begun harvesting paddy in the ayacut areas and were demanding starting of DPCs by the Tamil Nadu Civil Supplies Corporation. However, the centres were yet to be opened.
Five farmers dumped a tractor load of paddy in the middle of the road and staged a sit-in-protest. They said that paddy was cultivated in 700 acre in the area and harvesting has commenced.
The State government had fixed procurement price of up to ₹20.60 a kg in DPCs, but the centres were yet to be opened, they said and added that they were forced to sell to private traders at ₹14 a kg.
They raised slogans urging the administration to establish centres in the area so that farmers can sell their produce directly to the government. Later, police personnel pacified them after which the protest was withdrawn.