Poll grief for farmers as UP wheat procurement falls 40% to 2.7 mn tonnes

Less than a month left in procurement season and 50% of 5.5 MT target still left

The 2019 Lok Sabha elections have taken a toll on Uttar Pradesh farmers with wheat procurement falling by almost 40 per cent to 2.7 million tonnes (MT) from over 3.7 MT during the corresponding period last year.

This year, the Yogi Adityanath government had set a 10 per cent higher wheat procurement target of 5.5 MT compared to 5 MT during the 2018 rabi marketing season, which further pulls down the net procurement ratio pegged against seasonal target.

The wheat procurement season commences on April 1 every year, and continues for two and a half months till June 15, 2019. This means