Farmers demand more government harvester machines to counter dominance by private owners

As the samba harvest season nears, paddy farmers in Tiruchi are concerned over the shortage of government-provided harvester machines.

As the samba harvest season nears, paddy farmers in Tiruchi are concerned over the shortage of government-provided harvester machines. With samba paddy cultivation taken up on at least 50,000 hectares of land in the district annually, the Agriculture Engineering Department’s fleet of just three machines — one belt-type and two tyre-type — has turned out to be insufficient, forcing many farmers to depend on private operators who dominate the market.

Farmers want the government to increase the number of harvester machines to ensure fair pricing and timely harvests. The limited availability of government harvesters, coupled with labour shortage, leaves farmers at the mercy of private operators. These private players, many from Namakkal and Bengaluru, charge rates far higher than those fixed by the district administration. Last year, the administration set rates for private hires at ₹1,600 an hour for tyre-type machines and ₹2,400 an hour for belt-type machines. However, farmers alleged that the private operators seldom comply with the rules with many charging ₹3,000 and ₹4,000 an hour for tyre and belt-type machines respectively.

The Agriculture Engineering Department offers its harvest machines for hire at subsidised rates, which include fully subsidised diesel. The charges are ₹1,880 an hour for belt-type harvesters and ₹1,160 an hour for tyre-type harvesters. While these rates are affordable, the department’s limited fleet means farmers must book the machines well in advance and often face delays, disrupting their harvest schedule.

Vayalur N. Rajendran, State treasurer of the farmers’ wing of the Tamil Manila Congress, said lack of a robust enforcement mechanism to ensure adherence to fixed rates by private operators left farmers vulnerable. He stressed that private players went scot-free with the violation of government stipulation.

Ayalai Siva Suriyan, district secretary of the Tamil Nadu Vivasayigal Sangam, highlighted the need for block-level initiatives to procure more harvesters. He said that only government intervention could curb the dominance of private operators and ensure farmers benefit from fair and reliable access to machinery.

A senior official from the Agriculture Engineering Department acknowledged the issue, stating that despite Tiruchi and nearby districts, which were a part of Old Tiruchi region, cultivating significant areas of paddy, most machines were allocated to the Delta region, which is traditionally perceived as Tamil Nadu’s main paddy-growing area. The official added that farmers’ requests for additional machines had been forwarded to higher authorities for consideration.