PDS won’t be affected as Food Corporation of India has surplus stock.
Less arrival of paddy in various mandis of Punjab and active participation of private traders, have impacted the participation of government agencies in the procurement process. In the current procurement season, government agencies have procured 11 per cent less paddy as compared to last year as on December 1. However, the less procurement by government agencies would not affect the PDS ( public distribution system) as the central agency — FCI (Food Corporation of India), has surplus stock.
The total arrival of paddy in different mandis of the state this year was seven per cent less than the last year, as on December 1. While last year, the total arrival was 14.40 million metric tonnes, this year it is 13.35 million tonnes during the same period.
According to the data supplied by the state government, various government agencies including FCI, have managed to procure 11.35 million tonnes of paddy this year, while last year they procured 12.76 million tonnes of paddy, which is 11 per cent less than the last year.
Also, private millers and traders in Punjab played a significant role in the current paddy procurement season as compared to last year. The private millers in the state have procured over two million tonnes of paddy as on December 1 in the ongoing procurement season, while last year they managed to procure only 1.63 million tonnes.
Currently, about 96 per cent of the total anticipated production of 14 million tonnes of paddy arrived in different mandis of the state. Experts are of the view that the Punjab government’s recent decision to allow levy free private purchase of non basmati paddy and also Centre’s decision to lift the ban on export of non basmati rice has motivated private traders or millers in the procurement process in the state.
It is worth mentioning that levy paddy means paddy purchased by a rice miller with his own resources. Under the regulations, earlier private millers in the state were bound to give 75 per cent of the rice out of their private purchase to the central pool. Now the government has allowed levy free private purchase.
Analysts say besides these reasons there is also one more reason which is motivating the private millers. Like, last year, FCI was allocated 126 exclusive mandis in Punjab to operate while it was sharing 119 mandis with state agencies and private millers. But this year, the state government has allowed all the agencies, private millers to share all mandis with FCI.
Earlier, Punjab Food & Civil Supplies Minister Adesh Partap Singh Kairon said that out of two million tonnes of non basmati rice being exported from the country, Punjab was all set to export one million tonnes to the tune of Rs 2,500 crore during the kharif marketing season - 2011-12.
Kairon said the Centre has lifted ban on export of non basmati rice in the month of September and now the export of rice has only been permitted from private trade and not from the central pool.
