Hyderabad: Irrigation and Civil Supplies Minister Uttam Kumar Reddy presented a comprehensive set of demands to the Union Government during Union Minister for Food and Public Distribution Prahlad Joshi’s visit to Nalgonda. The discussions, held on Thursday, focused on procurement challenges, pending dues, storage constraints and the need for coordinated action to protect farmers’ interests across Telangana.
The meeting included Ministers Komatireddy Venkat Reddy and Raghavendra Reddy, senior FCI officials and local farmers. Welcoming the Union Minister, Uttam Kumar Reddy recalled their long association in Parliament and appreciated Joshi’s willingness to hear Telangana’s concerns. He submitted a detailed proposal seeking an additional 10 lakh metric tonnes of boiled rice under KMS 2024–25 (rabi) to ensure timely completion of CMR deliveries.
The Minister highlighted that nearly Rs 1,400 crore remained pending from previous procurement seasons. He said Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy and he had reiterated this demand earlier in the day during a review meeting in Hyderabad. He also sought the release of subsidy claims for 89,000 metric tonnes of rice distributed under PMGKAY, amounting to Rs 343 crore.
Uttam Kumar Reddy noted that several rice millers were seeking clarity on delivery schedules. Therefore, he urged the Centre to extend CMR delivery periods by 60 days for Kharif 2024-25 and by 120 days for Rabi 2024-25. He added that additional railway rakes were essential to speed up the evacuation of foodgrains from FCI godowns, where stocks had accumulated due to logistical constraints.
Centre urged to release dues and expand storage capacity in Telangana
To strengthen storage infrastructure, he appealed for one lakh metric tonnes of additional space within the Nalgonda FCI complex. This request, he said, was firmly supported by Minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy, as the district required enhanced capacity to safely manage the large volumes of paddy produced each year.
The Minister drew from his previous experience as a Lok Sabha MP and member of the Parliamentary Consultative Committee on Food and Public Distribution. He explained how he had repeatedly flagged inefficiencies in the distribution of coarse grains under national programmes. Nearly half of the allotted coarse grains, he said, were going to waste due to poor consumption patterns. In contrast, he highlighted Telangana’s “revolutionary” step of distributing 6 kg of fine-quality rice per person each month to 3.31 crore beneficiaries—nearly 85% of the State’s population.
Uttam Kumar Reddy emphasised that Telangana had emerged as India’s leading state in paddy production and procurement despite being geographically smaller than many others. This year alone, the kharif crop yielded nearly 150 lakh metric tonnes of paddy. Of this, the government was procuring 80 lakh metric tonnes at a cost of Rs 29,000 crore, representing the highest procurement in the country’s history.
He reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to preventing distress sales. To ensure this, 8,800 procurement centres were opened across the State, enabling farmers to receive timely support.
The Minister said Telangana continued to work with a cooperative federal spirit and acknowledged the Centre’s role in strengthening food security. He thanked Prahlad Joshi for his consistent support and expressed confidence that the pending requests—including additional allocations, dues clearance, CMR extensions, more rakes and storage expansion—would be addressed soon.
