Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Friday said that his government is committed to provide Minimum Support Price (MSP) of paddy at Rs 1,868 per quintal to the farmers of the state, the economy of which is predominantly dependent on agriculture.
The chief minister also directed the departments of Food, Civil Supplies, Consumer Affairs and Agriculture to make the procedure by which farmers sell their produce to government agencies simpler by removing bottlenecks in the system.
"Economy of the state is predominantly dependent on agriculture while the growth of the state is also dependent on the socio-economic development of farmers. Therefore, the state government always remained committed to the socio- economic development of the farming community," he said.
"The state government is also committed to provide Rs 1,868 to farmers as MSP for every quintal of paddy," the chief minister said at a meeting to discuss modalities to strengthen the supply chain of paddy procurement.
He also requested farmers to sell their produce to government-authorised agencies including Food Corporation of India (FCI) so that it can be ensured that they will get the MSP.
Sonowal asked the FCI to increase paddy procurement centres and set up such facilities in each development block of the state.
The chief minister also called for development of rural infrastructure to facilitate procurement and marketing of farmers' produce, according to an official release.