Farmers reiterate bribe collection at DPCs; collector says show proof
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Madurai: The oft-heard complaint from farmers that they are made to shell out bribes at
direct procurement centres
(DPCs) to process harvested paddy raged at the monthly farmers' grievance redressal meeting presided over by
Madurai collector M S Sangeetha
on Friday.
The farmers said while the govt has mandated only Rs10 per bag as handling charges of paddy, the authorities were collecting between Rs40 and Rs80 a bag. A section of farmers accused the officials of being in cahoots with local politicians in the corruption at DPCs. Agitated farmers even claimed that their leaders who sat in the front were playing second fiddle to officials and the govt, much to the discomfiture of the leaders. Police had to subsequently intervene to calm a wordy duel that erupted among them.
Responding to the complaints, the collector said farmers should stop paying bribe at DPCs and come to authorities with specific complaints. Agitated farmers however said the district administration was shaming them by twisting facts, but the collector vehemently opposed their accusations. "We need proof to punish a crime which the farmers don't provide," she told the meeting. To this, the farmers said those raising complaints were targeted by local politicians and there was no safety for their lives. Sangeetha promised that their genuine complaints would be taken seriously, and urged them to stop giving bribes at DPCs.
Meanwhile, even as the horticulture department distributed pamphlets about pest management in coconut, farmers from Kottampatti and Sholavanthan complained that almost 50% of their crop has been affected by whiteflies. They demanded a survey of the damage and compensation for the wilted trees. They sought spraying of pesticides using drones as local methods were not helping. The collector ordered a survey of the damage and initiated integrated pest control measures to save the crop.
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