Wheat-buying norms may be eased for more states

The food ministry on Wednesday said wheat procurement norms have been relaxed in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. The rules would be relaxed for other states, too, when the grains come to mandis, Food Minister Ram Vilas Paswan said.

The ministry, however, rejected Congress President Sonia Gandhi's demand to procure wheat with more than 14 per cent moisture content on the grounds that scientific evidence shows that such wheat was not fit for human consumption.

"I have visited Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh and what I saw was an unprecedented scale of damage, not seen in my lifetime," Paswan told reporters.

Unseasonal rains and hailstorms, being witnessed from February-end, have damaged rabi (winter-sown) crops in about 8.5 million hectares in 14 states, down from 18 million estimated a few weeks ago.