CM Revanth Reddy Cracks Down on Rice Millers Over Pending Paddy Dues

Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy has directed officials to recover every outstanding rupee from rice millers for government-supplied paddy, warning that those who deliberately evade payments will face stringent action. At the same time, he said the government would support millers who conduct their operations transparently and fulfil their business obligations.

Revanth Reddy issued the directions during a review of the Civil Supplies Department at MCRHRD Centre on Wednesday in the presence of Civil Supplies Minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy. The Chief Minister criticised the previous government for allowing large-scale dues to accumulate and then attempting to shift the responsibility onto the present administration.

Although some progress has been made in recovering the outstanding amounts, Revanth Reddy insisted that not a single grain of paddy should go unaccounted for. He directed officials to formulate clear procedures for recovering the dues and submit them to the Cabinet sub-committee for examination before the government takes a final decision.

The Chief Minister also suggested exploring an alternative for chronic defaulters, including the possibility of allocating their paddy to women’s self-help groups and entrusting the milling operations to them.

Revanth Reddy further called for advance planning to address recurring paddy storage shortages during procurement seasons. He ordered a pilot project using silo bags in major paddy-producing districts, including Nalgonda, Suryapet, Nizamabad, Peddapalli and Kamareddy. The government will examine allocating 50 to 100 acres per constituency for storage facilities operated by self-help groups.

Officials were also asked to identify private warehouses, function halls, old theatres and other suitable structures at the village and mandal levels in advance. The possibility of using large platforms and German tents for temporary grain storage was also discussed.

Separately, the Chief Minister directed irrigation officials to maximise the use of Godavari waters through the Yellampalli, Devadula and Sitarama lift irrigation projects. Uttam Kumar Reddy said nine pumps at Devadula were being operated simultaneously.

Revanth Reddy ordered officials to resolve operational issues in the Devadula and Sitarama projects immediately and conduct joint field inspections to assess pending compensation for submerged villages and affected lands. He said timely compensation could facilitate filling the Baswapur and Gouravelli projects.

He also sought a study on enhancing the capacity of the Gatt and Gudendoddi lift schemes and ordered the immediate appointment of a consultant for the Gudendoddi pumped-storage project.

On the Medigadda, Annaram and Sundilla barrages, Revanth Reddy reiterated that water storage must remain strictly in accordance with NDSA recommendations, directing officials to maintain continuous coordination with the authority over identified deficiencies.