Punjab announces closure of grain market after falling short of procurement target
India Today
The Punjab Mandi Board on Saturday announced the closure of grain markets after falling short of the procurement target set by the Centre.
The Punjab Mandi Board on Saturday announced the closure of the wheat procurement season after falling short of the procurement targets by nearly 37 lakh metric tonnes(LMT).
According to the data released by the Punjab Mandi Board, the state recorded a total arrival of 101.8 LMT of wheat grain out of which 95.9 LMT was procured by government agencies and 5.9 LMT was procured by private players. The Food Corporation of India (FCI) procured 129.12 LMT wheat from Punjab during 2021.
The Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution had fixed a target of 132 LMT wheat procurement from the Punjab government this year.
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The state government has decided to conclude the procurement of wheat in 825 mandis across the state from Sunday evening. There are a total of 1099 grain markets in Punjab out of which 274 have already closed.
Punjab's food,civil supplies and consumer affairs minister Lal Chand Kataruchak said the details of the wheat procurement season were issued by the mandi board. According to him, the state government has ensured the speedy disbursal of Minimum Support Price (MSP) dues directly into the bank accounts of the farmers.
Agriculture expert Devinder Sharma has cited the prolonged dry spell as the primary reason for the decline in wheat procurements. Drought resulted in shrivelled grains and subsequently decreased the yield.
