States Urge Centre To Hike Procurement Prices For Wheat

Wheat producing states yesterday informed the Union government that they would not be able to procure much wheat in the ensuing rabi marketing season unless the procurement price was raised from Rs 455 to over Rs 600 a quintal.

The current years wheat procurement price of Rs 455 a quintal, announced by the United Front government in October last, is lower than last years effective procurement price of Rs 475 (including the Central bonus of Rs 60 a quintal).

Wheat growers could not be expected to offload their stocks at the public procurement platforms at this prices, the food secretaries of the wheat growing states told Union food secretary BK Taiman here.

 

The meeting was attended by representatives of Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Bihar.

Though everybody, including the farmers, expected the new government at the Centre to announce an additional bonus on this basic price, the quantum of bonus would have to be substantial to prompt the growers to sell their produce to the Food Corporation of India (FCI) and state grain procurement agencies.

An attractive procurement price was needed all the more this year because of an anticipated smaller wheat harvest and higher ruling prices in the open market.

Punjab alone expected a production loss of nearly a million tonnes this year, compared to last seasons output of 13.8 million tonnes.

Punjab and Haryana, the biggest contributors to the Central grain kitty, did not commit themselves to the level of procurement in the ensuing rabi marketing season without knowing the likely support price.

The food secretary of Punjab is understood to have told Taimani that despite the apprehended production shortfall, the state could contribute more than last years level of 6 million tonnes provided the price was pegged at around Rs 610 a quintal. Haryana felt that anything above Rs 600 might be a good price.

The representative of UP expressed the confidence of mopping up around one million tonnes of wheat if suitable bonus was offered to the farmers.

The state was expecting wheat production this year to be down to 25.5 million tonnes from last years record 27 million tonnes.

Taimani urged all these states to coordinate the procurement operations with the Central and state level grain handling agencies to ensure maximum accrual of foodgrain to the Central kitty. He also suggested decentralisation of procurement operations to widen the base of this huge operation.

The states representatives pointed out that the availability of gunny bags was not adequate and might create problems in post-procurement grain handling. Taimani assured them to take up the matter with the textiles ministry.