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Govt procures record 43.3mn tonne of wheat in a year
According to data from food ministry, higher quantities were bought from Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and hill states such as Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand in the current season.
The Union government has procured a record 43.3 million tonne of winter-sown wheat this year, the highest ever, compared to 38.9 million tonne in the previous season, covering 4.5 million farmers, food secretary Sudhanshu Pandey said on Monday.
Procurement refers to the government’s buying of farm produce at minimum support prices, or MSP, from growers. Procured grains are then held as federally owned stocks before being distributed through the public distribution system to beneficiaries of subsidised food under the National Food Security Act, 2013.
In all, farmers were paid a total MSP of ₹84,369 crore, the top official said, adding that both the quantity procured and MSP paid stood at an all-time highs.
MSP is a federally determined floor price aimed at avoiding distress sale and signalling a benchmark price for private traders. MSPs are mostly effective in the case of rice and wheat crops as these commodities are procured by the government in sufficiently large quantities.
According to data from food ministry, higher quantities were bought from Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and hill states such as Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand in the current season.
Farmers in Punjab gained the most, having been paid ₹26,103 crore, followed by Madhya Pradesh at ₹25,205 crore and Haryana at ₹16,706 crore.
The previous record in wheat procurement was 38.9 million tonne during the 2020-21 procurement season that runs from April to March.
Procurement of paddy also stood at a record 86.2 million tonne. “Total paddy procurement should reach 90 million tonne,’’ said Food Corporation of India chairman Atish Chandra.
The 70th round of National Sample Survey 2012-13 had showed that only 32.2% of paddy farmers and 39.2% of wheat growers in the country were aware of MSPs. The survey also showed that only 13.5% of paddy farmers actually benefited from MSP, while only 16.2% growers sold their produce to government procurement agencies at MSP prices.
“Procurement and the reach of procurement drives have surely gone up since the 2012-13 survey. However, in many states, procurement is still not robust. The government should expand to areas where it traditionally doesn’t procure much to benefit more and more farmers,” said economist RS Mani, who was formerly with the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University.
According to latest available agriculture ministry data reviewed by HT, the progress in kharif sowing till June 25 lags last year’s levels. On June 25 this year, the total summer-sown area stood at 20.2 million hectares. This is 21% lower than last year’s 25.8 million hectare during the corresponding period.
