UP, Gujarat ask Centre to restore wheat quota under two food schemes

States raise matter in central government's meeting on food security, say beneficiaries complaining

BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat have asked the Central government to restore the wheat quota under two schemes that replaced the grain with rice to ensure stocks.

The National Food Security Act (NFSA) and Gareeb Kalyan Scheme made the swap a few months back to ensure adequate wheat stocks at the end of the current fiscal after domestic procurement dropped to multi-year lows because farmers sold their stock to private traders for better price and production fell in high temperatures.

“In western Uttar Pradesh, we are getting reports that beneficiaries are not accepting rice in lieu of wheat through the PDS system