There’s a perceptible anxiety among farmers in Punjab for last few weeks as they are having a hard time selling their paddy produce in the government’s wholesale market (mandi). The collective anxieties of the farmers have led to protests in as many as 60 sites across the state.

Sukbeer Singh, a farmer from Patiala’s Wajidpur village, is among thousands of such farmers. Last week, he harvested his seven acres of paddy fields but the yield is lying unpurchased at the nearby Mahmudpur grain market which has left him clueless.

“I’m very upset this time. Some (government procurers) say there’s moisture in the paddy, others say the storage has no space and some claim that this year the paddy won’t sell. Farmers blocked the Patiala-Sangrur road in front of this market on October 25. Officials came, cleared the blockage and left after giving assurances but my paddy still remains in the market,” the farmer told Down To Earth (DTE).

The logjam

The paddy procurement in Punjab is ridden with multiple issues at multiple levels.

The procurement process began on October 1, but it has been sluggish from the start. Due to the slow pace of procurement, Punjab’s markets have been witnessing heaps of paddy which the farmers have brought from their fields.

The farmers realised that something was amiss. After 15 days, many farmers staged sporadic protests at various markets but no resolution was achieved.

Satwant Singh, another farmer from Wajidpur, informed DTE, “Since October 10, there hasn’t been a single day when farmers didn’t protest for paddy procurement. Initially, protests were local but for the last 10-12 days, they have escalated to a state-wide scale. Farmers even temporarily freed all toll plazas in Punjab for 48 hours and blocked roads but nothing has changed. Currently, there are permanent protests at about eight locations in Punjab”.

The issue of paddy procurement in Punjab has four levels: the government, storers, commission agents (arhtis), and farmers.

Ramandeep Singh Mann, an expert in Punjab’s agricultural system, explained, “Farmers are bringing paddy to the markets, but it is not being lifted. Since October 12-13, there hasn’t even been space to stand in Punjab’s markets. The reason is the leftover stock from last year’s harvest. Only 700,000 tonnes of rice have been lifted from Punjab’s warehouses by the central government, while 12 million tonnes are still stored”.

“The Punjab government claims that 18.5 million tonnes of paddy will come this year. The question arises: where to store the new grain with warehouses already filled? This is causing confusion among farmers, commission agents, and storers alike,” he added.

What Mann said was echoed by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha in their press note.

According to the farmers’ organisation, last year’s grain (130 million tonnes of rice and five million tonnes of wheat) still lies in Punjab's warehouses and sheds, while new yields have started arriving in the markets.

Farmer leaders say that the lifting of last year’s paddy from the warehouses could have happened by March 31 or, at the latest, by May 31, but nothing has been done yet.

Grain procurement in Punjab

Various procurement agencies operate in Punjab, mainly under the central government, including the Food Corporation of India, Punjab’s procurement agency Pungrain, and Markfed.

Farmers bring their produce to the market, where arhtis purchase them on behalf of the agencies. The paddy then goes to storers, where it is cleaned and sent to the respective agency’s warehouse. In return, storers receive Rs 10 per quintal.

Thus, this issue is also related to commission agents and storers. Storers claim that the Central government’s warehouses in Punjab are full of grain, leaving no space for the new crop. This prevents them from moving paddy from the markets to the stores.

The lack of lifting has adversely affected the procurement process and the arhtiya association has been raising concerns about lifting the grain stored in warehouses since August.

Navkiran Patti, an expert on agriculture in Punjab’s Malwa region, attributed the chaos to systemic issues, stating, “The heaps of paddy in the markets aren’t selling because last year's paddy hasn’t been lifted from storers, and there’s a space problem for this year’s paddy in the storers”.

He also alleged that the procurement agencies are avoiding purchasing by citing excess moisture in the paddy.

“Due to the post-procurement lifting problem, commission agents are also refraining from buying. Instead of taking concrete steps to relieve farmers struggling with procurement issues, both central and state governments are merely blaming each other,” Patti explained.

“There is a clear lack of coordination between them, which is forcing a large section of farmers to sell paddy at prices below the MSP. Leaders from the Aam Aadmi Party and BJP are debating the procurement issues, but both are avoiding solutions, although the primary responsibility lies with the central government, the state government also shares responsibility since Punjab hasn't honestly raised this issue with the central government over the past year,” he added.

Sarvan Singh Pandher, a leader of the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha, told DTE, “The Centre is deliberately not lifting grain from Punjab's warehouses, causing the procurement process to slow down significantly. If the situation continues, not only Punjab’s farmers but also labourers, commission agents, and storers will bear the consequences”.

Farmer organisations scramble

The Kisan Mazdoor Morcha and the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (non-political) protested today, blocking highways in Badru Kh, Moga, Kapurthala, Phagwara, Gurudaspur, and Jassi Chowk in Bathinda. Following this, Punjab's Food Supply Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudiyan met with farmer leaders from these organisations in Phagwara.

Farmer leader Surjit Singh Phool, who attended the meeting, reported, “The government acknowledged that despite the moisture condition in the markets being fine, paddy has been sold at lower prices. The government will compensate for the illegal cuts imposed on the crops. The main market board informed us that an agreement has been made for 14 million tonnes of paddy with 3,850 storers, out of which 2,900 are operational. The government has stated that arrangements are being made for lifting 4 million tonnes. During this meeting, the minister also acknowledged that 1.9 million tonnes of the old stock has been lifted so far”.

Surjit Phool further explained, “According to official figures, 4.9 million tonnes of paddy has already arrived in the markets, resulting in no space left to stand. We have also demanded that the discussions from the chief minister's meeting with the central government regarding the paddy issue be made public. After the government’s assurances, the organisations have decided to open the road blockades, but our protest by the roadside will continue, and if the situation does not improve in the coming days, farmers will be forced to take harsher measures”.

Currently, protests are being held at around 60 locations in Punjab.

According to the Punjab government, the Central government has lifted only 1.9 million tonnes of grain from Punjab, while 12.4 million tonnes of rice still remain in the warehouses. The Punjab government continues to assert that the central government has assured that all this stock will be lifted by March 31, 2025.

Considering the seriousness of the issue, yesterday, on October 27, Union Food Minister Prahlad Joshi held a press conference at his residence, stating that the government will buy every grain of paddy and make timely payments.

“Do not pay attention to misinformation regarding the lack of space for storage. There is no crisis in paddy procurement or storage, and misinformation is being spread. We have sufficient space and are creating more,” the minister said.

Joshi asserted that the government has formed a high-level committee under the CMD of FCI to ensure the smooth lifting of grain from Punjab.

“So far, 5,436,999.89 tonnes of paddy have arrived in Punjab’s markets. We still have space for 1.4 million tonnes of paddy, which will increase to 1.6 million tonnes by November 1,” he added.

Additionally, Food Secretary Sanjeev Chopra, who was present at the press conference, stated that the government is committed to purchasing 18.5 million tonnes of paddy, which includes about 12.4 million tonnes of rice.

Simply Put: Harvest of dissent