Telangana Rice Mills Shut as Millers Protest CMR Penalties and Inspections

<p>Rice mills across Telangana remained shut on Saturday as mill owners staged a statewide protest over a set of long-pending grievances linked to the Custom Milled Rice (CMR) process, government inspections, and delayed payments.</p>
<p>Raw and Boiled Rice Millers' Welfare Association district president Chiluveru Vaikuntam said millers were incurring losses due to fines levied for failing to account for grains under the CMR process. He said the government was conducting inspections through the Vigilance and Enforcement Department at mills to check rice and paddy stocks, a move he described as harassment.</p>
<p>Mill owners said the government was unfairly projecting them as wrongdoers. They raised objections to the recovery of CMR, saying it was causing further financial losses. They also flagged delays in the payment of processing charges and drying charges, and demanded that the 25 per cent penalty imposed for defaults be removed entirely.</p>
<p>The millers said they had repeatedly brought these issues to the government's attention but had received no relief so far. They also pointed out that the Food Corporation of India (FCI) was over-scrutinising grains on quality grounds. They called on the government to ease the conditions for accepting CMR from millers and to provide adequate space for storing milled rice.</p>
<p>Mill owners declared they would not reopen their units until the government resolved all pending demands. Mancherial district, which has 28 rice mills, has seen 22 of them booked for defaulting on CMR obligations.</p>
<p>Operations were also suspended across mills in the erstwhile Karimnagar, Nirmal and Nizamabad districts, with millers urging the government to immediately halt inspections, withdraw penalties, and address their broader demands.</p>