| The standard price that farmers will be paid for a bag of paddy sold to millers is expected to be determined by the end of this week.This was according to Dharamkumar Seeraj, General Secretary of the Guyana Rice Producers’ Association (GRPA), yesterday.Seeraj said that the GRPA is currently engaging stakeholders, to ensure that the agreed price is suitable for farmers and millers, in all rice cultivating areas across the country. The proposed price is between $3,500 and $4,000.Seeraj was contacted by this newspaper following yet another series of complaints by Region Three, Essequibo rice farmers, who are yet to receive payments for paddy sold two months ago.It was noted that although they are yet to receive final payments,NFL Jerseys Outlet, some farmers were paid advances in small amounts.However, the farmers are complaining that the advances received cannot suffice the needs of their families.“Some millers advance the farmers a small amount of money which is not enough to buy fuel to run the machines they have. We need to plough our land and pay laborers. We are sinking. HELP US!”The farmers added that many of them cannot afford to pay installments on their respective purchases, therefore increasing threats of their items being repossessed.“The R.P.A is selling seedlings for $6,000 while the poor farmers do not know how much they will be getting. However,Wholesale Cheap Jerseys China, it is over heard that we poor farmers will be getting a price of $3500 for Extra ‘A’ paddy which is unfair. This cannot compensate us.”Over the past few months,Cheap Nike NFL Jerseys, rice farmers,Wholesale Jerseys China, particularly those in Berbice and on the Essequibo Coast, had staged protests over not only being underpaid for their paddy by millers, but also the low quality of chemicals on the local market.Following these protests, a government-led team was dispatched to look into the plight of the farmers, but before the investigations could be completed, the farmers again complained that the questions asked by members of the team,Cheap Jerseys Authentic, and the works being done,Cheap Jerseys China, did not seem to be addressing their concerns and the actual issues affecting them. |
