Raipur, Dec 1 (PTI) On the first day of paddy procurement for the kharif marketing year 2021-22 in Chhattisgarh, 88,000 metric tonnes of the produce was purchased from 30,085 farmers on Wednesday, a state government official said. As per the food department, paddy is being procured smoothly at all the centres and the guidelines issued for protection against coronavirus are being followed, he said. There is an atmosphere of enthusiasm among the farmers for selling paddy, the state public relations officer said. The food department officials said the number of registered farmers in the state is 24,09,453. The procurement centers have been increased keeping in view that farmers can easily sell paddy at the nearest such facility. This year, paddy is being procured through a total of 2459 centres across the state, they said. The state government has given permission to sell paddy in own gunny bags, the official said, adding that the rate fixed by the state government has been increased to Rs 25 per gunny bag from Rs 18 apiece. "Farmers will get additional benefits with an increase in the price of old gunny bags. Due to this, there is happiness among farmers. They have expressed their gratitude towards the state government for this," he added. PTI COR NP NP