Post News Network
Bhubaneswar, Jan 31: Sharecroppers in the state are a neglected lot in so far as provision of relief or paddy procurement is concerned. They are also deprived of government benefits thanks to the faulty policy decisions taken by the department concerned, it is learnt.
Crops were badly damaged in Cyclone Phailin but sharecroppers did not get any assistance from the government.
Now, due to a faulty paddy procurement policy of the food supplies and consumer welfare (FS&CW) department for the kharif season, the sharecroppers cannot sell their produce in the fair market.
According to the guidelines of the procurement policy, “sharecroppers can be allowed to sell their surplus paddy only after the consent of the recorded tenant as mentioned in the farmer registration form. The purchase officer of the respective agency shall verify the documents before the purchase of paddy and enter the document number in the vendor receipt and purchase register”.
Generally, sharecroppers come from poor financial backgrounds and are mostly illiterates. They are usually unaware of the formalities prescribed by the FS&CW department. Taking advantage of this, landlords are unwilling to provide them the records and enlighten them on the norms.
The sharecroppers become victims of distress sale as they cannot sell their produce at government mandis. They become victims of black-marketing and are forced to sell their produce at a price much lower than the minimum support price (MSP), sources said.
“I have to undertake sharecropping every year as I don’t own a piece of land. Whatever I reap, I sell it in the open market because the government doesn’t procure the produce,” said Fakir Pradhan, a sharecropper from Rayagada
district.
“My babu (landlord) won’t agree to help me out,” Pradhan said. Sharecropping is largely prevalent in Rayagada, Sonepur, Gajapati, Ganjam and some other southern and western districts. FS&CW secretary Madhusudan Padhi agreed that sharecroppers do face problems, but passed the buck to the court of revenue department when asked about government policy.
“That the sharecroppers are deprived of selling their paddy through our agencies is a fact. But what can we do? I have requested the Chief Secretary two years ago to make some provisions for them, but to no avail,” Padhi told Orissa POST.
Since the problem is related to land and ownership, only the revenue department can resolve it, he added.
