 "wheat production")
The Centre's wheat procurement declined by 44 per cent to 162 lakh tonnes till May 1 of the current rabi marketing year on higher exports and low arrival in Punjab and Haryana mandis, according to official sources.
As per the latest official data, about 162 lakh tonnes of wheat have been purchased by the government agencies till May 1 of the ongoing 2022-23 rabi marketing season (RMS). It was 288 lakh tonnes in the year-ago period.
Around 14.70 lakh farmers have benefitted from the procurement at the Minimum Support Price (MSP) value of Rs 32,633.71 crore, the data showed.
The rabi marketing season runs from April to March but the bulk procurement ends by June.
State-owned Food Corporation of India (FCI) and state agencies undertake procurement at a minimum support price to meet the requirement under the Public Distribution System (PDS) and other welfare schemes.
The Centre has set a target to procure record 444 lakh tonnes of wheat in the 2022-23 marketing year as against an all-time high 433.44 lakh tonnes in the previous marketing year.
The fall in the government wheat buying, the official sources said, was mainly due to increased private purchase for the export as well as lower crop yields, especially in Punjab and Haryana because of the sudden rise in temperature.
About 9.63 lakh tonnes of wheat have been exported by private players till April 21 this year, as against 1.3 lakh tonnes in the year-ago period, the sources said.
As per the data, the government's wheat procurement in Punjab declined to 89 lakh tonnes until May 1 of the current marketing season when compared to 112 lakh tonnes in the year-ago period.
As much as 37 lakh tonnes were purchased in Haryana as against 80 lakh tonnes in the comparable period.
In Madhya Pradesh, the government agencies have procured 34 lakh tonnes of wheat. The wheat procurement in the state stood at 73 lakh tonnes in the year-earlier period.
There is a huge demand for Indian wheat amid sharp decline in availability of the grain in the global market due to the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine. Both nations are major producers and exporters of wheat.
The country is estimated to have exported over 7 million tonnes in 2021-22 fiscal.
The official sources further said that the Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh governments have sent teams to directly procure wheat from farmers.
Meanwhile, the Centre has stopped the sale of wheat under the Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS) to bulk consumers and asked them not to wait for recommencement of the scheme for buying the grain, the sources added.
Private players are buying wheat at more than MSP amid increased demand for the grain for export.
Wheat production is pegged at a record 111.32 million tonnes in the 2021-22 crop year (July-June), as per the second advance estimate of the agriculture ministry.
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