G20 podium
NEW DELHI: Farmers affected by the untimely rainfall and hail may soon get some relief with the Centre likely to relax standards meant for procuring wheat. States like Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh have decided to purchase wheat, which may have lost its lustre and thickness at the prescribed minimum support price (MSP).
The Madhya Pradesh Cabinet this week agreed to purchase wheat affected due to the recent rain and hailstorm at MSP. The Union Food Ministry has also allowed purchase of grains with lustre losses above 10 per cent from the state’s farmers.
There will be, however, a marginal value cut of Rs 5.31 per quintal against the prescribed MSP of Rs 2,125 per quintal for the current season.
Meanwhile, in Uttar Pradesh, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath told officials to provide relief to farmers facing vagaries of nature. Altogether, 3,4137.52 hectares of agricultural land in 10 districts of the state are hit, according to a recent study. This includes 1,02,497 farmers who are reeling under the effects of untimely rain and hailstorms, it added.
In Punjab, a survey is currently underway to take stock of the situation, but till now, the state agricultural department estimated that overall yield may suffer by at least 15 to 20 per cent.
Procurement of wheat for Rabi Market Season (RMS) 2023-24 has commenced in the country and a quantity of 10,727 metric tonnes of wheat has been procured up to March 27. According to authorities, procurement of wheat is expected to gather momentum by the middle of this month when more crop starts reaching mandis. The unseasonal downpour caused widespread damages to crop in some places and has delayed the harvest.
As per the Second Advance Estimates published by Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, the estimated production of wheat is around 1,121 lakh metric tonnes this season.
