Odisha Rice Millers Called Off Their Strike: Here’s Why

By Megha Bajaj
The deadlock between rice millers and the Odisha state government has finally been resolved. Rice millers across the state had recently begun on strike, but after reaching a partial agreement with the government on their demands, they have called the protest. In the midst of this, the good news is that the paddy procurement from farmers has also resumed. Notably, the All Odisha Rice Millers Association launched an indefinite strike on Monday, disrupting the paddy procurement process in Odisha. Now, with the association calling off the strike, paddy farmers have breathed a sigh of relief, and things are returning to normal. The association has announced its cooperation with the state government. Now, let us first understand what the association's demands were.

What were the demands of Rice Millers?

The rice millers were protesting over four main demands, the first one is an increase in milling charges, a revision of transportation rates, an increase in custody and maintenance charges for paddy stored in warehouses, and a clear policy regarding timely payments. The Odisha state government has currently agreed to only one out of these four demands: the payment of three months' custody and maintenance charges for the paddy. Mahesh Bansal, the president of the association, provided information regarding the negotiations with the government on the association's demands. He stated that the government has agreed to one of the four demands.

Farmers and procurement agencies have breathed a sigh of relief

 

He stated that the government has accepted the demand for the payment of three months' custody and maintenance charges. Responding to the rest of the three demands, he added that the government is considering them and has assured a decision soon. Farmers and procurement agencies have breathed a sigh of relief. Regarding the withdrawal of the strike with the association's president, L. Deepak Ranjan Das, mentioned that the organisation decided to call off the strike keeping in mind the Makar Sankranti festival on January 14 and the interests of the farmers. Moreover, he informed that the government would issue a notification regarding custody charges within a day or two.

He stated that the government urged for a week's time to address their three demands. Not only this, he also added that the organization has clearly told the government that if no concrete decision is taken on the remaining three demands within 15 days, the organization will consider its future course of action. Notably, there had been a tug-of-war between the Odisha state government and the association over these demands in Odisha for a couple of months. In order to find a solution, Odisha's Food Supply and Consumer Welfare Minister, Krishna Chandra Patra, held a meeting at Lok Seva Bhawan with members of the All Odisha Rice Millers Association and representatives of millers from 30 districts.

After the meeting, All Odisha Rice Millers Association president Mahesh Bansal informed that they had presented five of their nine demands to Minister Krishna Chandra Patra, who agreed to fulfill two of them. These included primarily the release of custody and maintenance charges for the Kharif Marketing Season (KMS) 2023-2024 and 2024-2025, and increasing the transportation charge from 28 paise to 43 paise. Furthermore, Bansal mentioned at the time that the government had asked for more time to address the remaining demands. Following the meeting, Minister Patra stated, “We decided to meet again soon to resolve the other issues, to which they agreed. I am confident that all the issues raised by the rice millers will be resolved after two or three rounds of talks.”

What about the rest of the demands of rice millers?

Odisha's rice millers had given an ultimatum to the state government, stating that they would not enter into any agreement with the Odisha State Civil Supplies Corporation (OSCSC) until the stock from the previous season was cleared from their warehouses and their other demands were met. Now, the good news has popped out on this issue with the Odisha state government agreeing to one of the four demands of the rice millers. The rest of the three demands are being considered by the government, and an assurance of a quick decision has been given in the meantime. Regarding paddy procurement in Odisha, more than 14 lakh metric tons of paddy have been procured so far in 19 districts of Odisha during the current Kharif marketing season.

Besides this, Odisha is among the leading states in the country in terms of paddy production. Paddy cultivation provides a good income for farmers in the state.  Farmers sell their paddy to the government. A meeting regarding paddy procurement was recently held under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, with the presence of state cabinet members and officials. During this meeting, the Chief Minister was informed about the paddy procurement from farmers at the Minimum Support Price (MSP). It is worth mentioning that in this meeting, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi issued orders to the officials linked paddy procurement, instructing them to maintain complete transparency in the procurement process and to ensure that the farmers' rights are protected under all circumstances. Apparently, the Odisha government has set a target of procuring 93 lakh metric tons of paddy in 2025-26. Districts such as Bargarh play a significant role in paddy production in Odisha. When it comes to the quantity of paddy production in Odisha, the state produces approximately 115 million tons of paddy annually.