Guwahati: The Assam government has announced the establishment of procurement centers across the region to purchase mustard seeds directly from farmers.
As part of this initiative, farmers will be offered a fixed minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 5,450 per quintal, surpassing the prevailing market rate of Rs 4,500 to Rs 4,800 per quintal typically received by mustard farmers in the state.
The Assam government has granted approval for the procurement of 45,793 metric tonnes of mustard seeds for the Rabi season of 2023 under the Price Support Scheme.
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This step is expected to generate an additional income of approximately Rs 250 crore for the farmers, thereby providing a substantial boost to the state’s economy and the welfare of its farming community.
Speaking at a press conference to announce the scheme, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma highlighted that mustard cultivators would soon have the opportunity to sell their produce at 101 designated procurement centers spread across the state.
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Initially, the procurement process will commence at two centers located in Raha (Nagaon) and Amingaon (Kamrup Rural), while an additional nine centers are slated to be established in various regions of the state.
The subsequent rollout of more procurement centers will be implemented in a phased manner.
The procurement will be conducted through the Assam State Agricultural Board and the Assam Food and Civil Supplies Corporation as state-level agencies, with the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd (NAFED) acting as the central agency.
After the procurement process, the state government will sell the mustard to NAFED.
To ensure transparency and timely payments, the bank account details of the beneficiary farmers will be shared with NAFED. Consequently, farmers will receive the MSP of Rs 5,450 per quintal directly in their bank accounts within three working days of the sale of their stock.