Need for silos has mounted due to the record procurement target of wheat in the current season.
The committee chaired by Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen to study the requirement of grain storage expects to give its report next month.
Before it does so, an assessment by consultants Mott MacDonald on how much of the storage could be in open silos and in covered godowns is to come. The Food Corporation of India (FCI) and the Union food ministry would give their opinions on the study to the Sen panel.
“The issue of storage is being taken up on a priority basis,” Sen told Business Standard.
The Government of India has estimated an urgent need for silos of two million tonnes capacity across India to save grain from rotting. There is an issue, though, with location. The consultants think the new ones should be in consuming states, while officials prefer these to be in producing states. The latter procure huge quantities in three to four weeks and these cannot be transported to consuming states simultaneously.
The need for silos has mounted, due to the record procurement target of 26.3 million tonnes of wheat in the current season against 22.5 mt last year. Scientific storage is essential if the new Food Security Bill is to be implemented properly.
The country has 42 mt capacity storage, but this is not enough. The foodgrain procured by government agencies for public distribution is kept in both covered godowns and open plinths and often becomes unfit for consumption over time.
According to sources in FCI, procurement from Punjab is estimated at 10 million tonnes of wheat in a span of 40 days. The movement is restricted to a maximum of a million tonnes per month, as the railways have their own limitations.
