The state government of Punjab has paid Rs 18,660 crore to farmers in the state, procuring 110 lakh metric tonnes of paddy crop, and lifting 88 lakh metric tonnes out of that, chief minister Bhagwant Mann said on Monday. Following an inspection of the grain markets in the state, Mann stated that a total of 112 lakh metric tonnes of paddy has arrived in the state’s markets, reiterating the Punjab government’s commitment to procure every single grain of the kharif crop.
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Stressing the state government’s efforts to ensure foolproof procurement at a micro level, the Punjab chief minister also assured that the entire process of procuring the grain stock will be completed within a week. The procurement drive for paddy crop in the current fiscal year is being closely monitored since the production took a hit due to erratic rainfalls. In addition to this, the prolonged ration scheme by the union government also led to a notable decline in the food stocks this year.
Highlighting the measures taken by the Punjab government, CM Bhagwant Mann also mentioned the plan of action wherein different districts of the state were assessed on the basis of the cropping pattern. The zoning of the various districts helped the state government to ensure adequate power and water supply aiding the production of the kharif crop. In addition, Mann also claimed that no complaint has been registered from the farmers across the state during the current procurement session.
The paddy procurement in the state of Punjab commenced on October 1 and was reported to have peaked in the second week of the month. After paddy is procured from the farmers by the Food Corporation of India and various other state agencies, the stock is handed over to millers who convert the paddy crop to rice. The paddy to rice conversion is 67 per cent. According to the data available on the website of the Department of Food and Public Distribution, the state of Punjab has procured 125.48 lakh tonnes of rice as of September 30, 2022.
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