Foodgrains

Reservoir levels lower than last year but higher than 10-yr average; ample elbow room in grain storage for now

A foodgrain godown has developed major cracks in the subsidence-hit Joshimath, prompting authorities to empty the stock and distribute them among consumers in advance, officials said on Friday. They said a proposal to use another godown in Gulabkoti as an alternative is under consideration. Located in the worst-affected Singhdhar ward of Joshimath, the godown developed cracks on January 2-3 itself like the rest of the buildings in the area but the chinks were narrow, District Supply Officer Jaswant Singh Kandari said. "As some rooms of the godown suffered a slight subsidence of late, it has become difficult to use them," he said. It was then decided to empty the godown, Kandari said. "We have distributed the foodgrains among consumers in advance through PDS grain dealers in the area and the godown is now almost empty," he said. The godown has a capacity to stock 800 metric tonnes of foodgrains at a time and caters to people not only in Joshimath but in several other places in Nit

The government on Wednesday approved the extension of mandatory packaging norms which provide for all foodgrains and 20 per cent sugar to be compulsorily packed in jute bags, sources said. The reservation norms for mandatory use of jute in packaging for Jute Year 2022-23 (July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2023) were cleared at a meeting of the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The mandatory packaging norms approved for Jute Year 2022-23 provide for 100 per cent reservation of foodgrains and 20 per cent reservation of sugar to be compulsorily packed in jute bags, the sources said. The approval to these norms will provide relief to 3.7 lakh workers employed in jute mills and ancillary units as well as support the livelihood of several lakh farm families, they added. It will also help protect environment because jute is a natural, bio- degradable, renewable and reusable fibre and hence fulfils all sustainability parameters. The jute industry is significant to India's econ

Crop estimates have been way off the mark between the first and subsequent estimates and over the years this divergence has grown

India's foodgrain production is estimated at an all-time high of 323.55 million tonnes in the current crop year ending June, driven by the projection of a record output of rice, wheat and pulses. Agriculture minister Narendra Singh Tomar attributed the record foodgrain output to hard work by farmers and agri scientists, besides the government policies. In its second advance estimates of production of foodgrains released on Tuesday, the Union agriculture ministry said that wheat production is estimated at record 112.18 million tonnes in the 2022-23 crop year (July-June), up 4.44 million tonnes from the previous year. The previous high in production of wheat, a major rabi crop, was achieved in the 2020-21 crop year at 109.59 million tonnes. The output had fallen to 107.74 million tonnes in the previous year due to heat waves in some producing states. Rice production is estimated at 130.83 million tonnes in 2022-23 crop year, up 1.36 million tonnes from the previous year, an official

Inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Uttar Pradesh has streamlined its public distribution system by digitalising it to provide subsidised foodgrains to 15 crore people, which has helped the state save Rs 1,200 crore annually, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said on Monday. In his inaugural address at the G20 Digital Economy Working Group (DEWG), Adityanath said, "Today the result is that we are providing foodgrains to 15 crore people through the public distribution system and by using technology, we are also saving Rs 1,200 crore annually." As part of India's presidency of the G20, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) is hosting the first Digital Economy Working Group (DEWG) meeting in Lucknow from February 13-15. The DEWG, originally called DETF, was formed in 2017 as part of the German G20 presidency with the aim of promoting the implementation of a secure, interconnected, and inclusive digital economy. With the global digital economy estimated to b

The central government's integrated food security scheme has been named as the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana (PMGKAY), under which free foodgrains are being given to more than 80 crore poor people from January 1. The move also comes amid Opposition's criticism over the government discontinuing free monthly distribution of 5 kilograms of foodgrains to poor people under a scheme that was also known as PMGKAY. This scheme, which was launched in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic in April 2020, ended in December last year. Last month, the government decided to subsume PMGKAY into two existing food subsidy schemes and consequently, the new integrated food security scheme came into force. "The new scheme has been named as Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana (PMGKAY)," the food ministry said in a statement. Keeping in view welfare of the beneficiaries and in order to maintain uniformity across the states, free foodgrains will be provided under the PMGKAY for the year 2023 t

India imposed a 20% duty on shipments of white and brown rice in September and banned broken rice sales abroad

One Nation One Ration Card ensures that National Food Security Act beneficiaries can lift their entitled foodgrain from any Fair Price Shop, anywhere in India using existing ration card

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The problem with govt's decision lies not with fiscal maths but with how it addresses realities of economics of farming and the income levels of much of India's working population, writes T N Ninan

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will take a call on extending the PMGKAY scheme to provide free ration to the poor beyond December, Union Minister Shobha Karandlaje said on Thursday said stressing that the government has sufficient foodgrains stock. If Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) has to be extended, the decision will be taken by the Cabinet, headed by the prime minister. The Cabinet meeting is scheduled on Friday. In September, the government had extended PMGKAY for three months till December 31. "Covid-19 cases are coming. The scheme is till December. ...After that, the decision (on extending it) will be taken by the prime minister," Karandlaje, Minister of State for Agriculture, told reporters. In last 28 months, the government has spent Rs 1.80 lakh crore on distribution of free ration to the poor under PMGKAY, she said. The government has sufficient foodgrains stock to meet the requirement under the food security law and other welfare schemes, she added. The

Wheat prices have surged in India this year after a sudden rise in temperatures hit crop yields and output

The Centre on Saturday said it has sufficient foodgrain stocks to meet the requirements under the food security law and other welfare schemes. The government is also regularly monitoring the prices of essential commodities. "Government of India has sufficient foodgrain stocks under central pool to meet the requirement of NFSA and its other welfare schemes as well as for additional allocation of PMGKAY," an official statement said. About 159 lakh tonnes of wheat and 104 lakh tonnes of rice will be available as on January 1, 2023, as against the respective buffer norms requirement of 138 lakh tonnes of wheat and 76 lakh tonnes of rice as on January 1. As on December 15th, around 180 lakh tonnes of wheat and 111 lakh tonnes of rice are available in the central pool. Buffer norms requirements have been envisaged for particular dates of the year as on 1st of April, 1st of July, 1st of October and 1st of January, the ministry noted. The stock position of wheat and rice under central po

India's stockpile of wheat was above the buffer stock norm at the last scheduled count on October 1 and the next such quarterly review which takes into account seasonal procurement cycle, will be due on January 1. According to a written reply to a question in Rajya Sabha by Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Piyush Goyal, the minimum buffer requirement changes every quarter, peaking on July 1 when procurement of Rabi crop ends. It dips to the lowest on April 1 as accumulated stocks get released for beneficiaries of government schemes ahead of the new crop coming in. As per the reply, India's wheat stock was 227.46 lakh tonnes on October 1, 2022, as compared to the buffer norm of 205.20 lakh tonnes. The stockpile has since dwindled to 190.27 lakh tonnes as on December 1, 2022, primarily due to the release of foodgrain for supply to poor beneficiaries while hardly any procurement was added to the stockpile. At the next count on January 1, the buffer requirement of wheat is 138 lakh

India's spending on subsidised foodgrain to the poor may rise to 2.7 trillion rupees ($32.74 billion) this fiscal year, as the govt continues to provide support to the poor at least until December

"The food subsidy burden is already crossing Rs 3 trillion and we are hopeful that it will be brought down below that mark," said a senior government official

Earlier on Wednesday, Erdogan confirmed that Moscow had agreed to resume its implementation of the grain export deal

The sudden move by Russia has left leaders scrambling to rescue the UN-and-Turkey-brokered agreement credited with saving vulnerable populations from risk of starvation.

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