Bhubaneswar: Following protests by farmers in several places of Odisha, state government Monday said that the AgriStack identity number is not mandatory for peasants to participate in the paddy procurement process.
AgriStack is a flagship digital initiative jointly implemented by the Centre and state governments. It aims to create a unified digital platform where every peasant receives a unique Farmer ID, enabling seamless access to government schemes, crop advisory, crop insurance, institutional credit, input subsidies and other services.
The platform is expected to enhance transparency, target benefits accurately and speed up service delivery, officials said.
Paddy farmers in Baragada and Balangir districts staged a protest Monday, alleging that an AgriStack ID or farmer ID was being asked for during registration for the upcoming Kharif crop season.
“Only farmers who have crop land in their name can get the AgriStack ID. Most farmers don’t have the Record of Right (RoR) for their land. Besides, sharecroppers are also facing problems,” said Sudam Patra, a protesting farmer from Baragada district.
Following the protest, Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister Krushna Chandra Patra held a meeting with MLAs from Sambalpur, Baragada and Balangir districts regarding the problems faced by farmers during registration for the Kharif season paddy procurement.
Later, while talking to reporters, Patra said that AgriStack is not mandatory for farmers to register to sell paddy to the government.
“No farmer will be left out of registration due to lack of an ID. All farmers will be registered and provided with tokens,” he said.
The consent of the landowner is required for sharecroppers, and such people residing abroad can provide their consent through a special app, said Patra.
Earlier in the day, a meeting of an inter-ministerial committee led by Deputy Chief Minister K V Singh Deo was held to ensure a smooth and transparent farmer registration process for the upcoming Kharif paddy procurement season 2026-27.
Similarly, special guidelines are being formulated for sharecroppers, with the government working to resolve potential challenges, officials said.
Till date, 94,657 farmers have registered to sell paddy for Kharif 2026-27.
Now, two types of registration slips are provided to the farmers — one with AgriStack and the other without it — and both are valid, officials said, adding that farmers can register till August 31.
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