Inclement weather threatens large stocks of unsold wheat in Punjab mandis

Unseasonal rainfall and thunderstorms across Punjab have placed vast quantities of wheat at risk of damage, with more than 1.69 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) lying unsold in grain markets as of Friday. The unexpected downpour — recorded at more than 1,500% above normal in a single day — has raised serious concerns about the moisture content and overall quality of the crop awaiting procurement.

According to data released by the Indian meteorological department (IMD), the state witnessed a drastic spike in rainfall in the 24 hours leading up to 8.30 am on May 2, threatening both unpurchased and unlifted wheat stocks across mandis. As of May 2, 119.28 LMT of wheat had arrived in mandis across Punjab. Of this, 117.59 LMT had been purchased by state agencies and private traders. On Friday alone, 1.15 LMT of wheat arrived, and 1.61 LMT was purchased. Of Friday’s purchase, govt procurement agencies bought over 1.5 LMT, while private traders purchased 10,845 MT.

Despite robust procurement figures, lifting of the grain from mandis remains sluggish. Out of the total purchased wheat, only 58.56 LMT — just under 50% — has been transported out of mandis so far. On Friday, 3.02 LMT of grain was lifted, but a large stockpile of more than 60 LMT remains exposed to the elements. Both arhtiyas (commission agents) and farmers on the ground are concerned that the unprotected stock could suffer significant quality loss, impacting both state food reserves and the financial returns for growers.

Still, this season’s procurement is showing improvement over last year. As of May 2, 117.59 LMT has been purchased, compared to 112.77 LMT during the same period in 2023. Farmers and market officials are urging state agencies to expedite lifting and introduce emergency protections to prevent spoilage, as erratic weather patterns challenge the agricultural supply chain increasingly.

The untimely rainfall has also caused significant damage to the exposed wheat stock at markets across Ferozepur and Fazilka districts, with farmers and commission agents reporting heavy losses. In these grain markets on Friday, TOI found a large number of wheat-filled gunny bags and heaps of wheat, still lying in the open, soaked in rainwater. The farmers and commission agents claimed that the the soaked grain would deteriorate in quality and could take days to dry properly.

For the last several days, they have been raising concerns over delayed transportation of wheat due to inadequate lifting arrangements, and have now asked the govt to compensate them for the damage. Farmer unionist Sukhjinder Rajan accused the market committee and the local administration of negligence, claiming there was no arrangement of tarpaulin in the market, while lifting was tardy. A procurement agency official said he had tasked labourers with drying out the wet wheat sacks before shifting those to the godowns. He admitted that lifting was slow due to shortage of labourers.

Reports from Chandigarh suggest that the wind speeds during the thunderstorm range from 40 to 60 km an hour, and damage to wheat grain was across Punjab. The wheat stored in gunny bags suffered the most damage, with Fazilka being the worst hit. With 9.9 mm of rainfall against the normal of 0.6 mm, Punjab recorded 1556% excess rain between May 1 and 2. Haryana recorded 2,905% excess rain, at 12 mm against the normal of 0.4 mm, while Himachal Pradesh reported 11% deficient rain, at 2.8 mm against the normal of 3.2 mm. In Punjab, Kapurthala was the lone district not to report large excess rainfall.

Muktsar reported 50 mm of rainfall until 8.30 am on May 2. Gusty winds at a speed of 91 kmph were reported in Fatehgarh Sahib, 78 kmph in Sangrur, 70 kmph in Hoshiarpur, 65 kmph in Jalandhar, 63 kmph in Faridkot, 57 kmph in Abohar, and 41 kmph in Ferozepur. Apart from waterlogged grain markets, uprooted trees and electric poles, electric transformers also faced the fury of high-speed winds, leading to power outages in many places. The thunderstorm and rains started nearly at midnight on Thursday and continued until the morning of Friday. The weather office says that thundersqualls (speed reaching 50 to 60 kmph, gusting to 70 kmph) are very likely at isolated places over Punjab, Haryana, and Chandigarh on May 4 and 5.

This article has been republished from The Tribune.