THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Kerala High Court has strongly criticized the Kerala State Civil Supplies Corporation (Supplyco) for accumulating substantial arrears in payments owed to farmers. The court has directed Supplyco to ensure that the arrears for paddy procured from farmers are paid within one month.
This directive comes in response to a series of pleas filed by a group of farmers, who claimed that despite supplying paddy to Supplyco in April and May this year, the payments under the procurement scheme have not yet been disbursed to them.
Justice Devan Ramachandran, presiding over the case, stated that the non-payment to farmers cannot be justified, emphasizing that Supplyco cannot evade its responsibility to make the payments. The court suggested that Supplyco may propose to the farmers that payments be made through banks, leaving the choice to the farmers. However, if any farmers object to bank transactions, the court has directed Supplyco to find alternative means to disburse the payments.
Meanwhile, Justice Devan Ramachandran expressed dissatisfaction with the state government’s governance, describing it as “very poor.” He characterized the delay in payments to farmers for the paddy procured by Supplyco as a “sorry state of affairs” and urged Supplyco to expedite the disbursement of due payments.
Justice Devan Ramachandran further emphasized that it is shameful for the state government to prejudice farmers further due to Supplyco’s inability to secure the resources needed to fulfill its contractual commitments.
The court has also mandated that Supplyco submit an action report by October 30.
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