This is the harvesting time. The paddy farmer, both sharecropper and otherwise are once again at the mercy of buyers. The going price of a kilogram of paddy is approximately Rs 20/=. The price of rice in the retail market has skyrocketed, hitting a Rs 70/= per kilogram. Farmers accuse big businesses of monopolizing and manipulating the paddy market by buying at low prices which would soon lead to many farmers going out of business. Consumers, on the other hand, are furious over inflated rice prices.
