Five thousand paddy bags damaged in rain at government procurement centres near Madurantakam

CHENNAI: Around 5,000 paddy bags kept in the open at government procurement centres near Madurantakam in Chengalpattu district were soaked and sprouted following continuous rain brought by Cyclone Ditwah, leaving farmers distressed over the loss.

The paddy was purchased from farmers at the direct procurement centre in Thandarai village until November 30, after which the centre was closed. However, officials failed to move the purchased stock to safe storage facilities and left the bags piled up in the open for several days. Farmers said that in earlier years, stocks were shifted to Food Corporation of India godowns during the procurement process itself, but this year the bags were not transported in time.

With persistent rain over the past few days, the paddy bags were drenched, causing the grains to sprout and making the stock unusable. Farmers who visited the site expressed anguish, saying they toiled day and night in their fields only for their produce to be wasted due to official negligence. They demanded strict action from higher authorities against those responsible.

Farmers also urged the administration to ensure that such incidents do not recur by providing temporary shelters at procurement centres during the monsoon and by shifting purchased stocks to safe godowns without delay.

Officials said most of the paddy bags had already been transported, but the last batch could not be moved as lorries were unable to reach the centre due to deteriorated roads during the heavy rain. They admitted that the sprouting of paddy was regrettable and assured that preventive measures would be taken in future.