Bihar opens highest number of wheat procurement centres

After paddy, Bihar has again set an ambitious target to procure wheat from its farmers for the central pool. According to official sources, the state has planned to almost double its wheat procurement for the 2013-14 rabi procurement season to 1.5 million tonnes (mt), as against the earlier procurement of 0.8 mt. However in the current season, Bihar is yet to procure any. Even last year, till the beginning of May nothing was procured.

"We believe that wheat procurement in Bihar starts a little late than in other parts of the country because of delayed harvest of paddy," a senior Food Corporation of India (FCI) official said. He said Bihar has decided to open 8,997 wheat purchasing centres across the state, the highest in the country.

In the 2012-13 paddy marketing season (starts October), Bihar managed to purchase 2.3 mt till April-end, almost double the purchase during the same period last year. It set a target of purchasing two mt of paddy from farmers, but exceeded the target in the first six months of the procurement season. In contrast, Uttar Pradesh has set up 5,925 procurement centres and purchased around 0.3 mt of wheat till the end of April, down from 1.04 mt during the same period last year.

Madhya Pradesh has opened the third highest number of procurement centres in the country at around 2,800 and till April-end purchased 4.86 mt of wheat for the central pool, marginally down from 4.82 mt during the same period last year. In total, the government had planned to purchase 44 mt of wheat for the central pool in 2013-14, but has scaled down the target to around 40 mt because of below-par procurement in UP, Haryana, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh.

In total, the government had planned to purchase 44 mt of wheat for the central pool in 2013-14 but scaled down the target to 40 mt because of below par procurement in UP, Haryana, Rajasthan and also in Madhya Pradesh.

"In Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, private traders have been active this year in purchasing wheat directly from farmers and are not waiting for the government to make the first move which could lead to lower-than-expected procurement for the central pool," Food Minister K V Thomas had told Business Standard.