Bhopal, March 1 (IANS) The Madhya Pradesh government has postponed its wheat procurement programme, pushing back the start date from March 1 to March 15. The wheat will be procured at Rs 2,600 per quintal across its 4,000 procurement centres. Farmers are now expected to bring their harvest to the centres on March 15.
State Food Civil Supplies Minister Govind Singh Rajput explained that the delay is due to incomplete wheat harvesting and high moisture content in the wheat arriving at mandis. The high moisture content crop would not meet the fair average quality and fetch comparatively lower prices to the farmers. Farmers have been encouraged to register for wheat procurement at the designated support price centres, with the registration deadline set for March 31. The state government has sent necessary information via SMS to registered farmers.
Additionally, farmers can register from home through a dedicated web/mobile app or at facility centres in Gram Panchayats, Janpad Panchayats, and Tehsil offices. The government is anticipating approximately 80 lakh tonnes of wheat this rabi season in Madhya Pradesh.
Farmers of the state, if the expected quantity arrives in mandis, are likely to receive a support price amounting to Rs 19,400 crore, along with a bonus of Rs 1,400 crore.
According to the Minister, wheat will be procured first in the early arrival areas of Indore, Ujjain, Bhopal, and Narmadapuram divisions. Procurement in the remaining divisions will commence on March 17.
The Government of India has increased the support price by Rs 150 per quintal for the Rabi marketing year 2025-26, setting it at Rs 2,425 per quintal. However, in Madhya Pradesh, wheat will be procured at the higher support price of Rs 2,600 per quintal, including an additional assistance of Rs 175 per quintal. The state is known for its high-protein wheat varieties like Sharbati and Duram, which are in high demand both domestically and globally.
Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, speaking at a press conference in Jabalpur earlier this month, had reiterated that his government would procure wheat at Rs 2,600 per quintal, and paddy farmers would receive a direct benefit of Rs 2,000 per hectare if they had sown the crop.
Government statistics indicate that the wheat sown area in Madhya Pradesh ranges between 6.4 million and 9.5 million hectares. According to the second advance estimate of 2022-23, the area was 7.15 million hectares.
The wheat procurement data shows that in 2018-19, 73.16 million tonnes were procured at a cost of Rs 11,298.21 crore, in 2019-20, 73.64 million tonnes at Rs 13,560.59 crore, in 2020-21, 129.42 million tonnes at Rs 24,806.91 crore, in 2021-22, 128.15 million tonnes at Rs 25,301.62 crore, and in 2022-23, 46.03 million tonnes at Rs 9,271.42 crore.
–IANS
sktr/skp
