No support from government and the power holidays have impacted the rice mills
Barely one third of the 200 raw rice units and 12 of the 32 parboiled units are functioning in the district
Khammam: The rice mill sector in the district is headed for a crisis. A majority of the rice mills are on the verge of closure. The agrarian crisis on one hand, coupled with no minimum support pledge by the government and the power holidays have impacted the rice mills, particularly parboiled mills to the extent that their revival seems an impossibility. The situation is such that barely one third of the 200 raw rice units and 12 of the 32 parboiled units are functioning in the district.
With the big parboiled mills turning sick, about 3,000 people have been deprived of work, while the closure of raw rice mills has affected an equal number of hamalis. Adding to the problems is the fact that the Food Corporation of India has said that it would take only 25 per cent of the rice production as levy from this year. R. Venkateswara Rao, a rice miller, said that the decision of the Centre on levy is a huge blow to rice mills in the state. He said that they explained the problem to the state government already and plan to approach the Centre too.
Millers found themselves at the receiving end mainly because of the fall in the demand for boiled rice outside Telangana state.Rice production was up in neighbouring Tamil Nadu, Kerala, West Bengal and Odisha and this has affected the local market. Production of finer varieties of raw rice was also affected in Khammam district because of the delayed supply of water to the command area of Nagarjunasagar left canal.
( Source : dc correspondent )
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