Centre to allow further exports of non-basmati rice

Union minister of state for food and civil supplies, KV Thomas, on Thursday said that the Centre will allow export of further quantities of non-basmati rice, in addition to the 2.2 million tonne that has so far been exported, to ensure minimum support price (MSP) for farmers in the open market.

“We are even willing to consider the state government’s request for an additional Rs 120 per quintal as a bonus over and above the MSP to farmers. However, our request is that the state government should ensure that farmers get the MSP,” the minister said after a meeting with Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy on issues of price, storage and public distribution system.

 

The government procurement allegedly helps only millers who are the major procurers of paddy in the state as purchases by state agencies often start only after farmers sold majority of their produce to rice mills and commission agents. Wide spread protests, followed by crop holidays in paddy-growing coastal areas by farmers in the face of steep decline in paddy prices in the state, had forced the Centre to allow export of non-basmati rice last year.

Of 2.2 million tonne of non-basmati rice exported from the country so far, the share of AP alone stood at 1.5 million tonne, according to the Union minister.

In a bid to ensure MSP to farmers, the Centre is making payments through cheque system mandatory by 2014, the minister said. The state government is also planning to introduce an online payment/cheque payment system in 2-3 districts on a pilot basis from this rabi season, the chief minister said, stating that those who do not pay MSP will be strictly dealt with by the authorities.

On shortage in storage facilities, the minister said the state government can also create its own godown facilities with the funds available from RIDF and Nabard.

The Centre will be focusing on the modernisation of the public distribution system, which will be one of the important issues on the agenda of food and agriculture ministers’ meeting, scheduled to be held on February 8-9 in Delhi, the minister said.

Through the modernisation of the PDS, the government intends to see that the food subsidy is only reaching the needy sections of the population. At least 2.5 crore of the total 20 crore BPL cards, which are expected to be in the hands of ineligible people, can be eliminated through the modernisation of the PDS system, the minister said.

The government is paying Rs 16-Rs 17 on a kg of food grains towards subsidy totalling Rs 63,000 crore. Therefore, it is equally concerned about the efficient implantation of the PDS, according to him.

The food ministry had already reduced the losses to 0.01 per cent from the previous 2.5 per cent in food grain storage and handling through the modernisation of storage facilities, according to him.

A tariff commission will be set up to determine milling rates payable to rice millers etc, and the rates will be finalised after discussing with rice-producing states like AP, the minister said.