KOLKATA: The state Food and Supplies department will be introducing 70 mobile centralised procurement centre (CPCs), which will be reaching at the farmers' doorstep in remote areas to facilitate him to sell his paddy. The procurement usually starts from the month of November.
"For the year 2022-23, we will be having 100 additional CPCs for more paddy procurement. The number was 469 for the 2021-22 fiscal. We have also found that farmers hailing from the remote areas of the state cannot reach out to the CPCs for selling their paddy produce. So, we have decided to introduce 70 mobile CPCs this year," Food and Supplies minister Rathin Ghosh said during the question answer session at the state Assembly on Thursday. A farmer can sell a maximum of 45 quintal paddy at the CPCs.
The department had started procurement of paddy from the farmers from November 2 last year and had procured more than 53 lakh metric tonne (MT) of paddy that continued till August.
The minimum support price (MSP) of paddy was Rs 1868 per quintal. An incentive of Rs 20 per quintal over and above the MSP was offered to the farmers selling their paddy at the CPCs including Direct Purchase Centres under the state government.