Rice farmers living on the Essequibo Island of Leguan are expected to begin garnering earnings over the next several months, after almost two years of not receiving full payments for their paddy.
Arjune Raghuber had noted that he was owed some $350,000 by the rice miller
According to reports reaching Guyana Times, the proprietor of Leguan Rice Mill Inc has promised to pay the hundreds of thousands of dollars owed to rice farmers on the island.
The rice miller’s commitment comes in light of a High Court battle between him and the Leguan farmers; all parties involved have faced challenges since the collapse of the PetroCaribe Venezuela rice deal last year.
According to information reaching this publication, the miller, who is the defendant, asked to be granted a six-month period to pay off the farmers.
<<<Guyana Times>>> was also told that the miller intends to pay $2000 per bag of paddy. However, rice farmers on the island have noted that their prior agreement with the miller was $3000 per bag.
Young rice farmer Mahendra Tularam had called for the enforcement of the Rice Producers Act
The majority of farmers have rejected the $1000 decrease, while a few others are reportedly contemplating accepting the reduced offer.
This newspaper understands that failure to pay off the farmers will result in the proprietor of Leguan Rice Mill Inc being issued with a $2 million levy.
The miller had contended that farmers were not paid as a result of the difficulties rice millers were also facing.
On March 1, the rice miller had opined that if the Venezuela oil for rice deal had continued, the industry would have stood a better chance, as millers would have more funds in their coffers and farmers would have received their payments.
At that time, however, this publication was informed that despite the many complaints, millers did have some success in finding alternative markets for the rice to be sold. The miller had, however, observed that more assistance should have come from Central Government.
Meanwhile, the Leguan rice farmers have been adamant that they must be paid for their produce. They had appealed to the Rice Producers Association and the Agriculture Ministry, through its Guyana Rice Development Board (GRDB) sub-agency, but to no avail.
In fact, Agriculture Minister Noel Holder had suggested that the non-payment issue is a matter that should be sorted out between rice farmers and their respective millers.
During an earlier visit to Leguan,<<<Guyana Times>>>was told that depleted rice acreage by the then existing El-Niño weather patterns, coupled with the non-payment by millers had forced many farmers to withdraw money from their savings, while others had no choice but to sell-off significant portions of their livestock.
One farmer, Arjune Raghuber, had revealed that the miller owed him $350,000, while 29-year-old MahendraTularam claimed that he was owed $730,000.
Tularam had called for the enforcement of the Rice Factory Act which he opined was in place to compel millers to pay what was owed to farmers.
He further explained that millers should pay half of the money to farmers within two weeks, while the rest should be paid in 42 days.
