Hyderabad: Irrigation and Civil Supplies Minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy hit back at BRS working president KT Rama Rao over criticism of Telangana paddy procurement operations.
The Minister accused KTR of spreading false information to mislead farmers and hide the shortcomings of the previous BRS government.
In a statement issued on Friday, Uttam Kumar Reddy alleged that the BRS leadership was attempting to create politically motivated confusion among farmers.
However, he warned that such “procurement politics” would eventually backfire.
Telangana paddy procurement reaches record levels
Uttam Kumar Reddy said the Congress government was conducting the largest paddy procurement exercise in Telangana’s history.
He stated that the operation continued despite manpower shortages, logistical challenges and unprecedented paddy arrivals.
According to official figures, Telangana recorded 54.29 lakh metric tonnes of paddy arrivals by May 21.
Out of this, the government procured 46.21 lakh metric tonnes, achieving nearly 85 per cent procurement completion.
The Minister said procurement transactions involving more than 6.32 lakh farmers had already been completed.
Furthermore, the government credited Rs.7,841 crore directly into farmers’ bank accounts.
He described the ongoing exercise as a record-breaking Rabi procurement operation conducted on a war footing across Telangana.
Telangana paddy procurement surpasses BRS figures
Uttam Kumar Reddy said the Congress government had already outperformed several procurement seasons handled by the previous BRS administration.
He pointed out that procurement stood at 26.78 lakh metric tonnes during Rabi 2021-22 under the BRS government.
Similarly, procurement reached 36.63 lakh metric tonnes during Rabi 2022-23.
In contrast, he said the Congress government had already crossed 48.21 lakh metric tonnes this season while procurement operations continued.
The Minister also highlighted the previous Rabi season under Congress rule in 2024-25.
According to him, Telangana achieved an all-time high procurement of 60.44 lakh metric tonnes, while MSP payments reached Rs.10,882 crore.
Telangana paddy procurement backed by logistics
Responding to allegations of gunny bag shortages, Uttam Kumar Reddy termed the claims completely fabricated.
He said the government positioned nearly 20 crore gunny bags across procurement centres.
Moreover, he stated that adequate stocks were available to ensure smooth procurement operations.
The Minister said the government conducted daily reviews and deployed more than 13,000 trucks and lorries every day.
He added that officials continuously monitored logistics, lifting and transportation.
According to him, more than 43 lakh metric tonnes of paddy had already been shifted to rice mills.
Additional stocks were also being transported to storage facilities without interruption, he said.
Telangana paddy procurement row turns political
Uttam Kumar Reddy criticised opposition leaders for allegedly exploiting farmer deaths for political purposes.
He termed such actions insensitive and accused the BRS leadership of resorting to desperation politics after losing public trust.
The Minister said the Congress government ensured fair support, faster payments and better procurement systems for farmers.
He also claimed that the opposition was focusing only on creating misleading headlines through propaganda.
Uttam Kumar Reddy asserted that facts clearly showed the Congress government performed better in MSP operations, procurement efficiency and farmer payments.