Kailali. Bandhuram Dagaura, a resident of Tikapur municipality-4, has been waiting for the Food Management and Trading Company Limited. He sold some paddy at Rs 2,500 per quintal to raise his household money during the festival season but is waiting for food grains to sell the remaining paddy at the support price fixed by the government.

“We had to sell 10 quintals of paddy at around Rs 1,000 cheaper as it was not necessary to sell paddy at a cheaper price to meet household expenses. “If I had purchased the paddy on time, I would not have had to sell the paddy at a loss of Rs 10,000,” he said. ’

This pain is not only for Bandhuram. Most of the farmers have been facing problem as the Food Management and Trading Company has not purchased paddy on time. Farmers are compelled to sell paddy at a low price due to lack of space to store their produce. Even now, farmers have been selling paddy every year as they need more money during the festival season.

“There are 30-40 quintals of paddy, but there is no place to manage it. We had to sell it cheaply. Shrawan Tharu of Bhajani Municipality-3 said, “The farmers are compelled to sell the paddy they produce despite every scarcity.” ’

Another farmer from Bhajani, Jay Prasad Dhungana, complained that the government had never understood the farmers’ plight. He said that the government has not been able to purchase paddy on time at the support price fixed by the government, whether it is the sale of Chaite paddy or the sale of paddy in the rainy season.

“You can’t get rights in this country without protesting. But farmers often don’t know how to protest. “That is why the problems of farmers are not addressed by cultivating or selling the produce,” he said. According to him, the farmers cannot become self-reliant until the state addresses the problems of the farmers.

Many farmers have not brought paddy as they wait for the Food Corporation. Some farmers are waiting for food by piling paddy in their fields. “Till date, there has not been a single year in which the food company has purchased paddy from farmers on time. It’s the same this year. Jit Bahadur Chaudhary, a farmer, said, “I have not yet brought paddy waiting for food.” There is no possibility of purchasing paddy yet. Now, even if it is cheaper, it should be sold. He complained that the farmers never got the market price of their produce.

Stakeholders including the local administration have urged the farmers to purchase paddy at the earliest after the farmers protested against the Food Management and Trading Company Limited not showing any interest in paddy procurement. During a discussion with Kailali Chief District Officer Krishna Prasad Lamsal and other stakeholders, it was decided to urge the Food Management and Trading Company to start paddy procurement by October 24 and increase the paddy procurement quota.

The government-owned food market has been purchasing paddy at the price fixed by the government. After the farmers start buying paddy, the traders also increase the price. The company has been purchasing paddy at 6 places including Tikapur, Satti, Joshipur, Bhajani, Gauriganga of Kailali and Mohanpur of Dhangadhi.

Dipak Thapa, chief of the Food Management and Trade Company Limited provincial office in Dhangadhi, said that preparations are underway to purchase paddy from the purchase center. He said that no circular has been issued from the center for paddy procurement. He said that the procurement will start immediately after the central government sends a circular with quota determination.

According to him, the central government determines the quota for the purchase of paddy. The government has fixed the price of coarse paddy at Rs 3,463.81 per quintal and medium paddy at Rs 3,628.33 per quintal this year.