Cuttack, Sept. 26: The Odisha government's decision making Aadhaar card mandatory for procurement of paddy from farmers in the state has come under judicial scrutiny.

While a PIL has sought quashing of the notification issued on July 5 making Aadhaar card mandatory in respect of online registration by farmers for sale of kharif paddy for 2016-17, Orissa High Court has sought a reply from the state government.

Radhakanta Bohidar, 68, and Manoj Kumar Sharma, 43, both farmers from Sambalpur, filed the PIL. The petition came up for hearing on last Friday.

"After a preliminary hearing, the division bench of Chief Justice Vineet Saran and Justice B.R. Sarangi posted the matter to after two weeks for hearing along with the response of the state government," petitioner counsel Khirod Rout said.

"The court accordingly directed the state counsel to be ready with the reply by then," Rout said.

The new rule was part of the plan to automate paddy procurement at the co-operative society level and procure paddy directly from the farmers to ensure payment of minimum support price to them. The last date for the farmers to file applications for online registration to sell paddy was September 15 and the procurement is to start from November.

The PIL, however, has contended that the new rule makes no sense, as a large number of farmers are yet to receive Aadhaar cards. Under these circumstances, making Aadhaar card compulsory for online registration is "arbitrary, unreasonable and not congenial to the interest of the farmers of the state", the petition alleged.

"The process of online farmer registration has been introduced as part of a benevolent measure to provide minimum support price to the farmers but due to the Aadhaar card problem, most of the farmers are going to be deprived of selling their surplus paddy to the government," the petition said.

"The farmers who fail to register their names for not having Aadhaar card will be in deep trouble as different agencies of the state government will not procure paddy from them. As a result they will be financially exploited by the traders," the petition alleged, while seeking the court's intervention.

Official sources said the state government had introduced the Paddy Procurement Automation System (P-PAS), an online platform set up with the objective of maintaining transparency, efficiency, accuracy and timely flow of funds to farmers in the state. The Aadhaar card provision aims to ensure online payment for paddy procurement through the Odisha State Co-operative Bank directly to the accounts of the farmers.

In a related development, the Paschima Odisha Krushak Samanwaya Samiti has demanded immediate withdrawal of the decision making Aadhaar card mandatory for procurement of paddy through mass demonstrations. The samiti had claimed that 32 per cent of the farmers in the state were yet to be issued Aadhaar cards.