Bargarh: There are few takers for government supplied paddy seeds despite the alluring subsidy and other allied perks thanks to clumsy delivery and a poor subsidy-realisation mechanism.
The government has fixed a target to sell 41,760 quintals of paddy seeds for kharif cultivation this year. However, it has been able to sell only 20 per cent of the target by June end.
According to farmers, they find it difficult to deal with the Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) system, which was introduced for the first time this year.
According to this system, a farmer can procure a maximum two quintals of seeds. He has to pay `2,622 per quintal if he buys it from the assigned dealers; and `2,522 if he buys it from primary agricultural cooperative societies (PACS). However, the subsidy amount – `1,022 – will be credited to his account later. Even though a farmer can a get a quintal of seed at `1,500 from the government, it is difficult for him to pay `2,622/`2,522 at a time. Most of the farmers from extremely rural and tribal pockets even fail to understand the whole system and shy away from buying seeds from the government.
Lack of rainfall and delay in procurement of rabi paddy are other reasons behind the reluctance of people to buy seeds for the next season, said deputy director of agriculture Nabakishore Dash.
Krushnachandra Mishra, a farmer of Podabadi under Atabira block, said it is not easy to get seeds supplied by the government. One has to move from pillar to post to get a quintal of seeds from the government. “As I cultivate paddy on 50/60 acres of land, I never depend on government-supplied seeds. I prepare seeds from my own farm and use it for cultivation for a better harvest,” he added.
Khirasagar Karn of Karnatikra near Larambha said the government failed to supply seeds as per the requirement of farmers. At Larambha primary cooperative society, only ‘Swarna’ variety of paddy seeds is available. “The farmers are also unable to pay a huge sum at once. They are even not sure to get the subsidy amount in their bank accounts. So they prefer to buy seeds from outside,” he pointed out. He himself has procured seeds from outside for his 10 acres of land.
According to official sources, the district agriculture department has sold only 8,422 quintals of paddy till date. While 3338.8 quintals of seeds have been sold through the Orissa Agricultural Industries Corporation (OAIC), the Orissa State Seeds Corporation (OSSC) sold 5083.6 quintals. PNN
