PMB sets target to buy paddy from Trinco farmers

by Mohammed Naalir

The Government will purchase the Maha season paddy harvest from farmers in the Trincomalee district at the rate of 5,000 kilos from each farmer.

Special attention will be paid to the quality of paddy; the humidity of paddy should be below 14 percent, husk should be nine percent, mixing of different varieties of paddy below six percent and wastage at one percent, Area Manager, Paddy Marketing Board, W.M.N.R. Weerasekara told the Sunday Observer yesterday.

He said a kilo of Nadu is purchased at Rs. 32 and Samba at Rs. 35. Nearly 6,000 kilos of paddy have been purchased from farmers so far.

There are seven stores at the Love Lane store complex belonging to Paddy Marketing Board (PMB). Altogether 7,000 metric tons of paddy can be stored there. Nearly 1,500 to 2,000 metric tons of paddy can be stored at the large store.''We have opened paddy purchasing centres at Divisional Secretariat Division level.

There is a store at Gomarankadawala. We don't have a permanent store in Morawewa. We purchase paddy in temporary centres and bring them to Trincomalee," the Area Manager said. "We have a target to purchase paddy from each farmer and we can't exceed the limit", he said. The purchase limit will depend on the funds allocated by the Treasury.