New Delhi, March 28 (IANS) Punjab and Chhattisgarh topped among states as the Centre procured 741.62 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) of paddy in Kharif Marketing Season (KMS) 2021-22, up to March 27, government data showed on Monday.
Stating that the paddy procurement is progressing smoothly in KMS 2021-22 at minimum support price (MSP) from farmers, officials said that paddy procurement has been done from Chandigarh, Gujarat, Assam, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Jharkhand, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Telangana, Rajasthan, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, West Bengal, Tripura, Bihar, Odisha, Maharashtra, Pudducherry, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, and Madhya Pradesh.
About 105.14 lakh farmers have been benefited with an MSP value of Rs 1,45,358.13 crore, government data showed.
Apart from Punjab (1,87,28,335 MT) and Chhattisgarh (92,01,000 MT), the other top paddy procurement states included Telangana (70,22,000 MT), Uttar Pradesh (65,53,029 MT) Odisha (57,16,134), Haryana (55,30,596), Madhya Pradesh (45,82,610), and Bihar (44,90,319 MT).
Chhattisgarh, with 21,05,972, topped the list of states of farmer beneficiaries from whom purchases were done under MSP followed by Odisha (12,90,846), Telangana (10,62,428), Uttar Pradesh (9,47,326), Punjab (9,33,263), Madhya Pradesh (6,61,756), West Bengal (6,43,401), Bihar (6,42,225), Maharashtra (4,74,855), and Tamil Nadu (4,09,088).
Throwing a new dimension to the ongoing Pegasus spyware phone-tapping controversy, the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) expressed deep apprehensions that some 'foreign powers' may be snooping on the country, here on Tuesday.
While 12 students are from Kailash Nagar, eight are from Basti Jodhewal. District Magistrate Varinder Kumar Sharma has ordered closure of both schools till August 24.
Expressing concern over "inimical powers from across the border trying to exploit the resentment and disgruntlement against the government", he sought an enduring and expeditious solution to the farmers' concerns.
Citing the recent heavy influx of weapons, hand grenades, and IEDs into the state, with Pakistan's ISI also raising the ante ahead of the Independence Day and in the run-up to the Assembly polls, he told Shah at a meeting here this evening that the security situation was grave and needed the Centre's immediate intervention.
