"The trouble of storage of foodgrains has occurred due to problem of plenty arising out of record production of foodgrains in 2011-12," Food Minister K V Thomas said in Rajya Sabha replying to a discussion on foodgrains management.
While the country had produced 160.89 million tonnes of foodgrians in 2010-11, it has jumped to 193.64 million tonnes in 2011-12, he said.
Encouraged by record foodgrains output, the procurement of rice and wheat have also gone up. The rise in procurement has also occurred due to higher MSP and bonus offered by some states on purchase of foodgrains, the minister said.
"For the purpose of Public Distribution System (PDS) we need to procure 55 million tonnes of foodgrains but the purchase has exceeded to 75 million tonnes this year...This has triggered problem of storage and also shortage of jute bags," Thomas said.
The Food Minister also attributed the problem of shortage of jute bags and storage of foodgrains in Madhya Pradesh and other states to "wrong estimates made by these states about level of procurement in November 2011 which has exceeded the target substantially now."
Referring to crisis in Madhya Pradesh due to shortage of jute bags on which opposition BJP had cornered the government in Parliament, Thomas said the MP government officials during a meeting of the Ministry on November 22, 2011 had said they would procure around 65 lakh tonnes of foodgrains and for that they require 2.88 lakh bales (one bale comprises 500 bags) of jute. (MORE)
