CHANDIGARH: With granaries across Punjab already overflowing with last years’ stocks of rice and wheat, finding storage for new produce has proven to be a challenge. The procurement of 185 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) of paddy worth Rs 48,380 crore is all set to start in October. A bumper yield of 230 lakh tones of paddy is expected this year.The Union Government, in sync with the Punjab Government, has told the other state governments to consider advance lifting of rice for three to six months which will help Food Corporation of India (FCI) to evacuate rice from Punjab. The state government had requested the centre to shift 20 lakh MT of rice and wheat out of the state otherwise it could create law and order problems during ensuring procurement season. In a letter written on September 27 to the Punjab Chief Secretary Anurag Verma, Director (Storage) Mateshwari Prashad Mishra in Union Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution informs that the FCI has a stock of 132 LMT of rice and wheat and that the FCI has planned to move more than 15 LMT by the end of October. The letter also stated that close to 40 LMT of space will be created by the December 2024 to facilitate delivery of rice during KMS 2024-25 and an initiative has been taken to hire an additional 9 LMT of storage from CWC/SWC for storing CNR.”The State is requested to get some minor repairing done in the godowns available with the state agencies which are present storing around 40 LMT what so that after liquidation/movement of these stocks by March 2025 CMR deliveries can be taken in these capacities,” the letter stated. “Further DFPD has taken up with state governments to consider advance lifting of rice for three to six months which will help FCI to evacuate rice from Punjab,’’ it read. On September 23, this year, Punjab Chief Secretary Anurag Verma shot off a letter to Sanjeev Chopra Secretary to Government of India Department of Food and Public Distribution saying, “I had brought to your kind notice that generally FCI receives milled rice by March 31. However during KMS 2023-24, FCI could not provide space for the milled rice and so the delivery period had to be extended upto September 30.”The letter stated that under these circumstances, the millers of Punjab were reluctant to lift and store paddy which will be coming from mandis during KMS-2024-25.”Under these circumstances, it is necessary that at least 20 lakh MT of rice/wheat is shifted out of Punjab from covered storage … from September 1 to 22 only 6 LMT of rice/wheat has been shifted out of Punjab from covered storage, read the letter. The Punjab Chief Sceretary requested the Department of Food and Public Distribution to issue instructions to all concerned to move out at least 20 LMT out of Punjab from covered storage through the letter. He added that if it is not done, we will face huge law and order situation during ensuring procurement seasonThe monthly requirement for rice from Punjab, Haryana, and other major rice producing states is only around 5.50 to 6 LMT, even though 34 LMT is used across various public distribution programmes. At present 175 lakh tonnes of food grain (119 lakh tonne rice, 57 lakh tonnes wheat and 7 lakh tonnes paddy) is still stored in the godowns of four state procurement agencies, Pungrain, Markfed, Punsup and state warehousing corporation and Food Corporation of India.Of this 165 lakh tonnes is stored capacity in the covered godowns and seven lakh tonnes is in the silos b esides 40 lakh tonnes can be stored over the covered area plinths (CAP) thus total storage space is 212 lakh tonnes. Thus, due to space shortage, the state food supplies department requested the rice millers to store the paddy themselves but they have objected. Recently a delegation of the Punjab Rice Millers association met the CM Bhagwant on the sidelines of the review meeting of paddy procurement. Mann had assured them to take up their issues with the centre and had called the Union Food Minister Prahlad Joshi on the spot to apprise him of the space constraints in the state.
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