Punjab government appeals center to relax norms for shrivelled grains in wheat procurement
India Today
The Punjab government has appealed to the Union government to relax the norms for shrivelled grains in the state.
The Punjab Cabinet has appealed to the Union Government to relax the norms for shrivelled grains for the ongoing procurement of wheat. A spokesperson of the Punjab Chief Minister’s office said that the secretary of food, civil supplies and consumer affairs briefed the cabinet about the status of the ongoing procurement.
It was informed that out of the 14.9 lakh metric tonnes of wheat that had arrived in the mandis, more than 12 lakh metric tonnes had already been purchased. He revealed that out of the 5 lakh metric tonnes that arrived the previous day, more than 2 lakh metric tonnes were purchased on the same day.
The spokesperson added that the cabinet appealed to the Union government to allow relaxation in the norms of shrivelled grains without any value cut, since the farmer had already been penalised on account of a lower yield. This took place when the team from the Union government arrived to assess the damage of shrivelled grains in the state. A formal request in this regard had already been made by the state government, he added.
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The relaxation was sought after the wheat grains in the state shrivelled due to extreme heat conditions.The grain coming in the mandis contains shrivelled grain beyond the permissible limit of 6%. Thereafter, the Union government’s department of food and public distribution constituted five teams on Tuesday to assess the extent of the problem in the state.
The teams are on the way and will arrive shortly in the state to get a first-hand assessment of the extent of shrivelled grain arriving in the mandis. This data will enable the Union government to take a final decision on the grant of appropriate relaxation in the specifications.
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