Chennai, 24 October (H.S.) : The Communist Party of India (CPI) on Friday urged the Union government to immediately approve the procurement of paddy with up to 22 per cent moisture content, a request made by the Tamil Nadu government. The party also criticized the Centre for insisting on field inspections by central teams, calling it an unnecessary delay.

CPI State secretary M. Veerapandian stated that continuous rains over the past week have severely impacted farmers in the Delta districts. He noted that although favorable conditions last year led to an increase in the Kuruvai cultivation area by about six lakh acres, the premature onset of the northeast monsoon has caused extensive damage to standing crops.

Veerapandian explained the urgency of the situation, highlighting that both the fixation of Minimum Support Price (MSP) and the determination of permissible moisture content in paddy fall under the Union government's jurisdiction. He described the extent of the damage, saying, Due to the incessant rains, harvested paddy has lodged and remains submerged in water.

The heaps of paddy stored along roadsides have begun to sprout. Even at the direct procurement centres, the sacks are getting wet, leading to germination, a situation worsened by forecasts of continued rainfall.

The CPI State secretary strongly criticized the Union government's decision to deploy three teams for assessing the paddy's moisture content. He argued that instead of this exercise, the Centre should simply approve the State's request to allow procurement up to the 22 per cent moisture content limit.

Furthermore, he accused leaders of Opposition parties of engaging in cheap politics to shield the Centre's failures and urged them to instead lobby the Union government to protect the interests of the farmers by expediting the approval.

---------------

Hindusthan Samachar / Dr. R. B. Chaudhary