Pawar doesn't favour wheat bonus

In order to ensure adequate wheat arrivals in the state mandis, Punjab and Haryana have asked Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar to give farmers a bonus of Rs 400 per quintal.

Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal and Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda apprised him of the modus operandi of private flour mill owners who buy directly from farmers at a price Rs 5 to Rs 10 higher than the minimum support price (MSP).

Pawar said that the issue would be decided in Delhi. He said this year's MSP revision was inclusive of the bonus. Last year, the MSP of wheat was Rs 750 a quintal and Rs 100 were given as bonus.

The chief ministers expressed fears of a shortfall in wheat procurement if farmers are not compensated adequately. They also evinced concerns of the rising input costs for farmers.

According to Alok Sinha, chairman, Food Corporation of India (FCI), the procuring body has made an assessment of 155 lakh tonnes of wheat for financial year 2009. Punjab and Haryana are expected to contribute 85 lakh tonnes and 40 lakh tonnes to this figure, respectively.

The chief ministers also proposed advance availability of DAP fertiliser for the kharif crops this year as prices in the international market have escalated and the government has not contracted imports yet.

However, Sinha said 2 lakh tonnes of wheat had already been procured till date as compared to 49 thousand tonnes in the corresponding year last year.

The procurement fears are justifiable as farmers might diversify to other crops for higher remuneration. Some farmers have already diversified into aromatic plants and horticulture.

Pawar said there was no restriction on private players to buy wheat from these two states and added that corporates were keen to purchase wheat from states like Uttar Perdesh, Gujarat and Madhya Perdesh vis-a-vis Punjab and Haryana as they were to market it in down south.