Foodgrain stock in FCI kept safe ahead of monsoon: Paswan

Sitting on a foodgrain stock that is almost two times the required level, the government Friday said the reserves in the FCI godowns across the country have been "kept safe" ahead of monsoon.

Food Minister Ram Vilas Paswan, who reviewed the functioning of the Food Corporation of India (FCI), also said its officials have been directed to speed up the construction of modern silos with a capacity to store 10 million tonnes of foodgrain.

The government's grain inventory has built up due to record production and procurement in the last few years. The reserves with the FCI are about twice the required level of 41.1 million tonnes, as on June 1.

Southwest monsoon has been delayed and is expected to hit Kerala in the next couple of days.

Asked if the government has taken measures to handle overflowing godowns during monsoon, Paswan said: "The foodgrain procured by the FCI is not kept open. It is kept safely in the godowns."
A food ministry official said "the total foodgrains stock was almost two times higher than the required level of 41.1 million tonnes as on June 1."