Karnal (Haryana) : 6 committees formed to assess CMR delivery status in rice mills as deadline approaches
By Parveen Arora
With the deadline for the delivery of Custom-Milled Rice (CMR) approaching fast, the Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Department has constituted six committees to conduct physical verification of rice mills that were allotted paddy during the procurement season.
The teams will inspect rice mills across the district to assess the status of CMR delivery and verify the quantity of paddy stocks still lying in the mills. The findings of the verification exercise will play a crucial role in determining whether the government should extend the June-end deadline for CMR delivery.
Under the existing CMR policy, rice millers are required to complete the delivery of CMR by the end of June. So far, nearly 65 per cent of the rice has been delivered to the Food Corporation of India (FCI).
Mukesh Kumar, District Food and Supplies Controller (DFSC), said that the higher authorities of the department had deployed six teams for the district to physically verify all rice mills allotted paddy.
“Based on the findings of the physical verification, the department will take a final decision on extension of CMR delivery deadline,” Kumar said, adding that the teams are yet to start the verification process.
As per the CMR policy, rice millers were required to deliver 15 per cent of the CMR by December-end, 25 per cent by January-end, 20 per cent by February-end, 15 per cent by March-end, another 15 per cent by May-end and the remaining 10 per cent by June-end.
The department has already issued notices to rice millers who have failed to meet their delivery targets as per the schedule.
The constitution of six teams is also a response to the demand raised by the Karnal Rice Millers Association to extend the delivery deadline, citing logistical bottlenecks and inadequate storage space at FCI godowns. The association alleged that rice millers from neighbouring districts, including Ambala, Kurukshetra and Yamunanagar, had been attached to FCI godowns in Karnal for CMR delivery, resulting in congestion and shortage of storage space for local millers.
The association said that millers from other districts should have been allotted storage facilities within their respective districts.
Saurabh Gupta, president of the Karnal Rice Millers Association, said local millers were facing severe difficulties in delivering their stock due to a shortage of space at FCI godowns.
“We have repeatedly demanded a separate godown for the delivery of Karnal’s CMR. With only a few days left before the deadline, the government should grant an extension for CMR delivery,” Gupta said.
He maintained that the association had approached officials of both the FCI and the Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Department regarding the issue, but no solution had been provided so far.
Gupta further pointed out that rice millers had earlier faced challenges due to the non-availability of Fortified Rice Kernels (FRK), which were mandatory under the government’s rice fortification programme. However, on February 27, the Union Ministry announced the temporary suspension of the rice fortification programme following concerns raised by millers and other stakeholders.
This article has been republished from The Tribune.