Odisha Chief Secretary Meets Rice Millers to Address Procurement Challenges
Bhubaneswar: In a high‑level meeting today, Odisha Chief Secretary Anu Garg engaged with representatives of the All Odisha Rice Millers Association to resolve pressing issues surrounding paddy procurement and storage.
Senior officials, including Saswata Mishra (Additional Chief Secretary to the CM), Sanjay Kumar Singh (Principal Secretary, Food Supplies), and K. Sudarshan Chakravarthy (MD, Odisha State Civil Supplies Corporation) joined the deliberations.
Millers highlighted delays in custom milling from the 2024–25 Kharif Marketing Season, with nearly 10% of rice supply still pending.
They also flagged storage constraints, rising rental and maintenance costs, and increased transportation expenses.
To ease the burden, the association proposed establishing large‑scale paddy storage centres under the Chief Minister’s Agriculture and Industry Scheme.
The Chief Secretary assured that all concerns would be examined and necessary steps taken to strengthen Odisha’s food security and agricultural supply chain.
