Wheat procurement at record 37.19 mn tonne

The govt had purchased 27.50 mn tonne of wheat in the 2011-12 wheat marketing season

Helped by a record production of wheat, the government procurement of the key staple has increased by 35% to an all time high of 37.19 million tonnes in the current marketing season so far.

The government had purchased 27.50 million tonne of wheat in the 2011-12 wheat marketing season (April-March).

The procurement of wheat in this season has already surpassed the government's target of 32 million tonne.

As per official data, wheat procurement as on June 22 was 37.19 million tonnes and the arrivals stood at 39.46 million tonne.

Punjab and Haryana have procured nearly 12.82 million tonne and 8.66 million tonne of wheat, respectively, in the current season.

Wheat purchase in Madhya Pradesh stood at 8.49 million tonne, while in Uttar Pradesh it was 4.54 million tonne.

Wheat production in India, the world's second-largest producer, is estimated at a record 90.23 million tonne in the 2011-12 crop year (July-June). The minimum support price of wheat stands at Rs 1,285 per quintal.

A record production of foodgrains in the last two consecutive years has led to storage problem.

Food Minister K V Thomas yesterday said about 6.6 million tonne of wheat that is kept open in unscientific way, mainly in Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, runs a high risk of damage during the monsoon.

Of the 50 million tonne of wheat procured by the government, 27 million tonne is kept in the open, of which 6.6 million tonnes is lying in an unscientific way.