Telangana | People reserve the rice harvest in advance to lock in prices; farmers get ₹3,000-3,500 per quintal in open markets

Rising rice prices are boosting the income of paddy farmers in Telangana, with many opting to sell the crop in open markets at around ₹3,000-3,500 per quintal of fresh-crop fine rice, as against around ₹2,450 from MSP and a bonus of ₹500 (for fine rice). In addition, farmers receive advance orders from individuals who want to lock in the price and protect themselves from a potential increase.

This is in stark contrast to the situation experienced by farmers in the previous harvest season when they had to wait for several weeks before their farm produce was collected from Paddy Procurement Centers (PPC) and sold to rice mills. In addition, the current higher prices in the open markets and from individual buyers are seen amid the El Nino-induced water scarcity and the state government’s call to refrain from Rabi (Yasangi) rice sowing.

Advance reservation of rice

“We used to buy a kg of rice at around ₹45, which now costs over ₹90. I paid ₹5,000 per quintal (100 kg) in advance to a farmer who expected prices to rise,” said Ramu from a village in Vikarabad. A paddy farmer in Mahesh district said people have approached him to reserve rice in advance. The ryots process the harvest and deliver the grain in sacks. The price is about the same in Hyderabad, Khammam and other districts where people fear that rice will cost ₹100 per kg.

“We have heard of such cases – people are pre-booking the harvest. Farmers may lose potential profits if prices go up in the coming days, or individuals may lose money if prices go down, you can see,” said Sangani Yadaiah, field coordinator of Kisan Mitra, Vikarabad, who is dismayed at the rate of rise in prices.

Donthu Rambabu, joint secretary of Telangana Rythu Sangham, said he also came to know of cases of people pre-booking rice and farmers selling produce in open markets.

More than ₹3000-3500 per cent in open markets

The ryots who sowed early began to get the yield from the beginning of October. The harvest will stretch into December, meaning more rice will be available from the farms. Selling through the government PPC involves drying the fresh harvest for about ten days to reduce the moisture content from 35% to 17%, spending money to transport the produce to the PPC, renting a tarp if it rains, hiring workers to re-spread the grains for drying, and other expenses.

“This season, farmers are selling their crops in open markets and are getting over ₹3,000 per quintal of fresh produce, which has up to 35% moisture. While there is a chance of getting ₹4,000 to ₹5,000 in the coming weeks, some farmers whose crops are ready do not want to lose them to the rain,” Mr Rambabu said.

“Now we just have to get the yield and keep it aside. They will collect it from our farm,” said Chintanippu Muralidhar Rao, Somavaram village in Khammam. He was selling fresh produce at around ₹3,300 per kg. Recalling the last time the crop was picked up from the farm instead of transported, Mr. Rao said it was about 20 years ago when the supply chain was not well oiled.

Sai Yadav, a farmer from Devulamma Nagaram, Yadadri district, said he sold the fresh crop for ₹2,200 per quintal a few days ago.

What does this mean for the government?

Higher open market prices may mean that the government receives relatively less food grains. Rising food prices, adverse weather conditions and crop losses were factored in during a recent meeting by Civil Supplies Minister N. Uttam Kumar Reddy to strengthen food grain security to protect Public Distribution System (PDS) beneficiaries.

Estimated availability of Telangana

The state’s annual rice requirement is approximately 28.56 lakh metric tonnes (MT) to maintain the central PDS fund, other welfare schemes and the state fund, including the mid-day meal scheme.

The state has 9.64 million tonnes of rice in reserve as of October 16, according to the Civil Supplies Ministry’s inventory status. After factoring in the 18.39 lakh MT expected through pending deliveries of tailored rice (CMR) and other identified deliveries, the total estimated availability is 28.03 lakh MT, sufficient to meet requirements for 11.7 months, according to an official note issued on 19 October.

Published – 25 Oct 2026 19:27 IST