Centre needs to move out 12 LMT grains monthly for smooth paddy procurement: GoM

Punjab govt’s group of ministers, tasked with ensuring proper procurement of food grains, met on Tuesday and decided to take steps for paddy procurement almost four months in advance. It was pointed out that storage space for 40 LMT (lakh metric tonnes) of food grains will be created by Dec.

While urging the Centre to ensure regular movement of grains from Punjab’s godowns, the ministers noted that at least 12 LMT of grains need to be moved monthly to accommodate the new paddy crop. The ministers said that proposals for the construction of godowns with 46 LMT space were sent by a high-level committee of the state govt to the Centre. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann is personally taking up the issue with the Centre, they said.

The group of ministers was recently constituted to supervise the procurement of wheat and paddy in the state. It is led by Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian, with Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Minister Lal Chand Kataruchak, Transport Minister Laljit Singh Bhullar, and Water Resources Minister Barinder Kumar Goyal as members.

Paddy procurement in the state will begin on October 1 and last until mid-November. The ministers said efforts were on to create 40 LMT of space by December this year. Furthermore, around 82-83 LMT of space would be created by the end of June next year.

Khudian assured that all genuine issues of the millers, arhtiyas, and farmers would be resolved, and the issues requiring intervention of the Union Government/FCI will be taken up with them at the highest level. He further said that the state govt was trying to ensure ample space for storage. He added that over 100 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) of rice was already delivered, with a projected total of 117 LMT by July 31.

Kataruchak said that nearly 175-180 LMT of paddy is expected to arrive in the mandis in the coming Kharif Marketing Season, and the state govt was making requisite arrangements for the proper upkeep of the same.

This article has been republished from The Times of India.