Badal to ask NAFED for adding maize in crop procurement list

Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal will ask the Centre to add maize in NAFED's crop procurement list in order to enable it procure crop from Punjab.
The decision to this effect was taken in a meeting held here today where a team of National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd (NAFED) called on Punjab Chief Minister here today, said an official release.
The team was led by National Cooperative Union of India (NSUI) chairman Chandra Pal Singh and NAFED chairman V R Patel.
Badal said the state government has identified maize, cotton, oilseed crops, pulses and agro-forestry as alternative crops to break the rotation of wheat and paddy, making agriculture not only more sustainable but also environment friendly.

He asked NAFED to provide a proper marketing solution, especially for maize and oil seed crops.
Patel said NAFED will initiate maize procurement from Punjab immediately after getting permission from the Centre.
He also urged Badal to take up the matter of early release of NAFED's pending payments of about Rs 500 crore with the central government to bail out the organisation from financial crisis.
Badal gave an assured that he would certainly take up the issue with the concerned Union Ministry, the release added.