| Date: |
01-11-2014 |
| Subject: |
State slashes rice procurement levy to half |
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KOLKATA: The state government has slashed the levy imposed on the rice mills for procuring rice from the government from 50% to 25%, as the food and supplies department has kept intact its procurement target of 22 lakh metric tonne for the next procurement season.
State food and supplies minister Jyotipriya Mullick said that permanent food camps will be held for four months in 165 blocks across the state for selling rice to the farmers. "The state government will also give 15 paisa of subsidy for procuring per kilogram of rice," Mullick said, adding that campaigning will take place inside the villages to inform farmers on the camp.
The minister said that the rice mills will be able to procure and export paddy, giving half the levy charge from 50% to 25 %. This means that a rice mill procuring 10 kilograms of rice will only have to give 2.5 kilogram as levy to the state government and would be able to sell the remaining 7.5 kilograms from now on. "The state government will also give 15 paisa of subsidy for procuring per kilogram of rice," Mullick said, saying that the levy imposed on the rice mills in the last procurement year was 50%, meaning that rice mills had to give the state government 5 kg of rice for procuring 10 kg as levy charge.
Mullick said that a Food corporation of India (FCI) team had come in the city recently to look into the conditions of the godowns. The food minister said that they have set a target to procure 22 lakh metric tonnes of rice, similar to the amount that was kept last year
Source : timesofindia.indiatimes.com
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