FCI to sell 2.5 MT wheat out of 3 MT approved to flour mills, pvt traders

State-owned FCI will sell 2.5 mn tonnes of wheat to flour mills, private traders and other bulk consumers through e-auction out of the total 3 mn tonnes approved by the govt on Wednesday

State-owned FCI will sell 25 lakh tonnes of wheat to flour mills, private traders and other bulk consumers through e-auction out of the total 30 lakh tonnes approved by the government on Wednesday to check wheat and wheat flour (atta) prices.

Another 2 lakh tonnes of wheat will be offered to states/Union Territories for their schemes without e-auction, according to a notification by the food ministry.

The remaining three lakh tonnes of wheat will be offered at Rs 23.50 per kg to public sector units/ cooperatives/ federations, Kendriya Bhandar/NCCF/NAFED for converting the grain to atta and selling it to the public at a maximum retail price (MRP) of Rs 29.50 per kg.

On Wednesday, the Centre announced the sale of 30 lakh tonnes of wheat in the open market from its buffer stock to check the rise in prices of wheat and wheat flour (atta).

The proposal to sell stocks in the open market was taken on Wednesday by a group of ministers, headed by Home Minister Amit Shah, to bring down the retail prices.

As per the government data, the average price of wheat across major cities stood at Rs 33.43 per kilogram on Wednesday, up from Rs 28.24 per kg a year ago.

Average prices of atta (wheat flour) stood at Rs 37.95 per kg as against Rs 31.41 per kg a year ago.

FCI will sell 30 lakh tonnes of wheat in the next two months through various channels.

"The Food Corporation of India (FCI) will offload 30 lakh tonnes of wheat from the central pool stock to the market through various routes under the Open Market Sale Scheme (Domestic)," the food ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.

The food ministry had said that sales of wheat in the market through this scheme will have an "immediate impact on the soaring wheat and atta prices and will help contain the rising prices and will bring much relief to the common man".

To have a quick impact, the committee had decided that wheat will be offered to the flour millers, bulk buyers etc through e-auction for a maximum quantity of 3,000 tonnes per buyer per auction.

Last week, food secretary Sanjeev Chopra said that prices of wheat and atta in the retail market have risen and the government was exploring all options to control the rates.

FCI, the government's nodal agency for procurement and distribution of foodgrains, had around 171.70 lakh tonnes of wheat as on January 1 in the buffer stock.

Under the OMSS policy, the government allows FCI to sell food grains, especially wheat and rice, at pre-determined prices in the open market from time to time to bulk consumers and private traders.

The purpose is to boost the supply during the lean season and moderate the general open market prices.

Flour millers have been demanding from the government to offload wheat stocks from the FCI.

The Centre had banned wheat exports in May last year to control prices, after a slight fall in domestic production and a sharp decline in the FCI's procurement for the central pool.

India's wheat production fell to 106.84 million tonnes in the 2021-22 crop year (July-June) from 109.59 million tonnes in the previous year due to heat waves in a few growing states.

The procurement fell sharply to 19 million tonnes this year from around 43 million tonnes last year.

The area under coverage for wheat crops in the current rabi (winter-sown) season is slightly higher.

The procurement of new wheat crops would commence from April 2023.

Sources said that the government will consider lifting the ban on wheat exports after harvesting of new crop.