Page 2 - Fci

FCI offers 2.2 million metric tonnes of wheat for sale in open market

Official sources said that more than 1,100 bidders came forward for participation in the e-auction

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

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 .

Wheat prices climb amid delay in open-market sales by the Centre

The spike in prices coupled with almost-empty pipelines has renewed calls from flour mill owners for the government to liquidate some part of its wheat inventory

FCI 'corruption': CBI conducts searches across 50 locations; DGM arrested

The CBI on Wednesday launched a crackdown on alleged corruption in the Food Corporation of India, conducting searches at 50 locations in Punjab, Haryana and Delhi after arresting a DGM-ranked officer, officials said. The role of officials from technical assistants to executive directors in the FCI are under the agency's scanner, they said. The searches were started after the arrest of a deputy general manager (DGM) in the FCI while taking a bribe of Rs 50,000, they said. They said the operation is spread across multiple cities in Punjab, Haryana and two locations in Delhi. The sources said the agency has started the operation against an "unholy nexus of corruption" in the FCI involving a chain of officers, rice mill owners, grain merchants etc., engaged in the procurement, storage and distribution of food grains, they said. The CBI was developing intelligence for the last six months following many complaints received by it, they said. The role of state government employees will a

Will India become a net importer of wheat?

Wheat stocks with the FCI stand at a six-year low now, slightly above the minimum prescribed buffer. Will India turn into a net wheat importer now, just months after promising to feed the world?

Wheat price rise normal; have enough stocks to meet demand: Govt

According to FCI, the wheat stock in Central pool on April 1 next year is expected to be 11.3 million tonnes, higher than the buffer requirement of 7.5 million tonnes

Rice distribution through PDS, PMGKAY doubled in June-August period

As on September 16, FCI has approximately 22.45 million tonnes of rice and 24.09 million tonnes of wheat in the central pool

Wheat arrivals in India at 12-year high during Aug-Sept across markets

According to the agriculture ministry's data, wheat arrivals are the highest since 2010 when the amount was 4.38 MT

Centre says it has no plan to import wheat, sufficient stock available

Wheat production is estimated to have declined due to a heatwave that resulted in shrivelled grains in the northern states of Punjab and Haryana

Govt eyes ending schemes, including PAHAL, with wasteful expenditures

The PAHAL scheme, launched in 2013, is aimed at reduce diversion and eliminate duplicate or bogus LPG connections

'Wheat stocks can be 80% higher than buffer requirement by Apr 1 next year'

The government on Friday said wheat stocks in FCI godowns is expected to be 134 lakh tonnes at the start of next fiscal, 80 per cent more than the buffer norm.

What does dwindling central wheat stock mean for prices and production?

The wheat stocks in the Central pool have dropped close to the minimum required levels because of lower procurements. What does this mean for the grain's prices and production?

Why did India restrict wheat exports despite big trade plans?

With global wheat supplies impacted, the world turned to India - which promised to fill the void. But domestic compulsions forced it to backtrack. Find out why India slammed a break on wheat export

Statsguru: Six charts show India may see another bumper crop year

Wheat procurements may fall this year as exports and the private market have become more lucrative

Centre releases Rs 2.94 trn to FCI, states as food subsidy last fiscal

The Centre has released Rs 2,94,718 crore towards food subsidy during the last fiscal to Food Corporation of India (FCI) and states, which is slightly higher than the revised budget estimates. During the financial year 2021-22, the Department of Food & Public Distribution released Rs 2,94,718 crore towards food subsidy, under both DCP (decentralised procurement) and non-DCP operations put together, against the revised Estimates of Rs 2,92,419.11 crore. "This release of food subsidy is about 140% of the food subsidy released during 2020-21 and about 267 per cent of the food subsidy released during 2019-20," an official statement said. The subsidy has been released for procurement operations under MSP (minimum support price) and seamless distribution of foodgrains under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) and National Food Security Act 2013 (NFSA). In the last fiscal, the department spent 99.83 per cent of its expenditure by incurring Rs 3,04,361 crores against net .

Food Corporation at the crossroads as grain oversupply meets flat demand

Govt's food storekeeper is procuring twice the quantity national welfare schemes need. It is aware of the problem, and may soon find newer ways to dispose available stocks

Second Covid wave, global prices could derail Centre's FY22 subsidy maths

The Centre's plan to start FY22 on a clean slate seems to have gone for a toss within just six months after it cleared the food subsidy backlog and paid its pending liabilities to NSSF

What did FCI do differently this season to push wheat procurement?

Experts point to three major initiatives that led to a bumper purchase and laid the foundation for deeper and more structural reforms in the annual grain procurement process

Centre surpasses its revenue targets but higher food subsidy cancels gains

While govt made Rs 1.16 trn more revenue, it spent Rs 1.18 trn more on food subsidy too. But it can be said that the govt used the gains it made to settle FCI arrears once and for all

60% of govt 'spending spree' inevitably goes towards committed outlay

With schemes like MGNREGA and cash support via PM-KISAN given priority in allocation from the remainder, govt is forced to dip into capital receipts from disinvestment and borrow from the market