Odisha: Sundargarh stares at distress sale as 2.5 lakh tonne paddy likely to fall outside MSP net

By Prasanjeet Sarkar

About 2.5 lakh tonne of paddy could escape the safety net of minimum support price (MSP) in Sundargarh during Kharif Marketing Season (KMS) 2025-26, if one goes by the ground scenario.

With the district expecting to reap a bumper harvest, the brunt of low prices this time will be borne by small and marginal farmers. Since the government procures only a portion of the total paddy crop in a season, it is inevitable the surplus stock with cash-starved farmers would go for distressed sale.

Those privy with the scenario said the calculation for available surplus paddy is simple. Sundargarh has taken up 1,98,120 hectare (ha) for paddy cultivation in the kharif season 2025-26. Assuming the average yield to be 36 quintal per hectare, the total production is expected to be around 7.14 lakh tonne – and higher in case of a bumper crop.

Informed sources said, 30 per cent crop at around 2.14 lakh tonne is assumed to be kept for own consumption and around 15,000 tonne for seeds, totaling 2.29 lakh tonne. This year, government in the first phase has given a procurement target of 1.46 lakh tonne, which is 62 pc of the total procurement of 2.35 lakh in 2024-25.

Well-placed sources in the Food Supplies & Consumer Welfare (FS&CW) department said in the wake of the farmers demanding to enhance the procurement target, it is likely the final procurement in 2025-26 would be 2.35 lakh tonne or slightly more. Considering this, out of 7.14 lakh tonne harvest, around 2.50 lakh tonne surplus paddy may not come under the MSP ambit.

Sources said the rural economy is complex and farmers during kharif cultivation resort to personal and institutional borrowing. Once the harvest is over, they want crops to convert into cash to pay off the debt which force the farmers’ hands as local traders and middlemen lift stock from their door steps at throwaway prices. The victims are mostly small and marginal farmers.

According to official data, Sundargarh has about 2.68 lakh farmers comprising about 1.28 lakh marginal, 1.08 lakh small, 20,200 semi-medium, 10,200 medium and 1,290 large farmers. Additionally, there are about 17,000 share-croppers. The registration of farmers for KMS 2025-26 is pegged at 61,977 out of around 2.68 lakh.

Agriculture department sources claimed that traditionally small and marginal tribal farmers stick to paddy crops and despite encouragement, crop diversification achievement remains low. Sundargarh has about 1.63 lakh ha of high land covering both paddy and non-paddy crops. It is essential that farmers do away with paddy on high land and get better return from other cash crops, they added.

Chief district agriculture officer LB Mallick said this year bumper crop is expected. Civil supplies officials did not comment.

This article has been republished from The New Indian Express.