Punjab seeks policy to check foodgrain damage due to shortage of storage space

Punjab Food Minister Bharat Bhushan Ashu on Tuesday appealed to Union Minister of State for Food and Consumer AffairsRaosaheb Dadarao Danve to formulate an effective policy to check damage of foodgrains because of shortage of space.

"Pertaining to shortage of foodgrains storage capacity in Punjab, they (the Centre) should formulate an effective policy to check damage of foodgrains in the state. Due to this reason (space shortage), Punjab is now unable to bear annual loss of more than Rs 2,000 crore," Ashu said during a meeting with Danve in Ludhiana.

Danve is on a two-day visit to Punjab, a government release said here.

Although Punjab has been the food bowl of the country for the last several decades, the responsibility of managing storage of procured foodgrains is also on the state, Ashu said.

"Due to limited resources, Punjab is unable to increase the storage capacity on its own and the union government should assist the state government in this regard," the release said quoting Ashu.

He appealed to Danve that the union government should formulate a nation-wide effective policy in this regard, so that foodgrains produced in Punjab are not damaged.

He said Punjab is asked to manage storage of foodgrains for up to three years whereas foodgrains are not stored in Rajasthan for more than three months.

"If the union government formulates a policy, foodgrains from Punjab can be stored in other states like Rajasthan," Ashu said while advocating sale of foodgrains from Punjab to Afghanistan or other South Asian countries.

He also sought to quicken the movement of foodgrains through trains.

"For lifting of foodgrains, special permission is granted for only 10-12 goods trains daily, which should be increased to at least 20," he said.

He also demanded that under the Private Entrepreneur Guarantee (PEG) scheme, approvals for construction of godowns with at least 20 lakh metric tonne capacity should be granted.

Giving details about the current storage situation in the state, Ashu said around 95 lakh metric tonne of foodgrains from previous years were being stored in the state, out of which around 36 lakh metric tonne was lying in open (covered area plinth) and around 60 lakh metric tonne was stored in godowns.

He said around 130 lakh metric tonne of wheat was expected to arrive in mandis in April, and Punjab would be unable to store fresh crop due to shortage constraints.

Danve, while appreciating the Punjab model of Public Distribution System, said if foodgrains are distributed to beneficiaries for a collective period of six months in the entire country, then the problem of storage as well as damage of foodgrains would be resolved automatically.

"With the adoption of this system, 600 lakh tonne of foodgrains can reach the households in one go and the beneficiaries will be benefitted to a large extent," he said.