TIRUNELVELI
The sudden downpour in Ambasamudram area on Wednesday evening drenched the paddy procured from the farmers as the bags had been stocked on an open yard near the direct procurement centre at Ayansingampatti near Kallidaikurichi.
As water is being released from the Manimuthar Dam, farmers of Manimuthar, Vairaavikulam, Ayansingampatti, Zamin Singampatti, Paappaankulam, Ermaalpuram, Kallidaikurichi and the adjoining areas had cultivated paddy and banana on over 10,000 acres. As the Tamil Nadu Government’s direct procurement centre has been established in the community hall at Ayan Singampatti to procure the paddy being harvested in this region, the paddy procured from the farmers has been stocked there.
Though the officials in the direct procurement centre have been instructed to buy up to 2,000 paddy bags per day, only 300 to 500 bags of paddy are being procured from the farmers, the cultivators complain. Based on the moisture content in the paddy, the farmers are getting up to Rs. 19 per kilogram.
Since the community hall building is not spacious enough to store the entire quantity of paddy being procured from the farmers, the paddy bags had been stocked outside the community hall also.
As it began to rain suddenly on Wednesday evening, the paddy bags and the heaps of paddy kept outside the building got drenched completely in the unexpected shower.
“The officials, before starting the procurement of the paddy from the growers, should have calculated the quantum of arrival based on the area of cultivation and kept adequate space ready for storing the paddy. However, the indifferent attitude being shown by the officials have led to this disaster. The paddy bags stored on the ground close to the community hall have been inundated by water now,” said farmer Boothapandian of Kallidaikurichi.
After the sudden rains, the officials took efforts to drain the rainwater stagnating around the paddy bags stocked on the ground.
