Wheat procurement surpasses govt's target by 6.25 pc to over 34 MT

New Delhi: Wheat procurement has crossed the government's target by 6.25 per cent to 34.08 million tonnes (MT) so far in this marketing year as purchases in Uttar Pradesh have picked following special efforts by the state authorities.

Food Corporation of India (FCI) and other state agencies had procured 29.37 MT in the same period of the 2017-18 marketing year (April-March).

Total wheat procurement stood at 30.82 MT in 2017-18. The government fixed higher target of 32 MT for this year in view of record output.

According to official data, of the 34.08 MT procured so far this year, 21.45 MT has been purchased from two states Punjab and Haryana. Buying in these states has been completed.

However, the procurement operation is underway in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, which will continue till next month. More wheat is expected to be procured in UP as the state government has made extra effort to ensure a minimum support price (MSP) of Rs 1,735 per quintal to farmers, the industry players said.

So far, 3.82 MT of wheat has been procured in UP and the figure could rise by end of the procurement season. In Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, 7.24 MT and 1.46 MT of wheat has been procured, respectively, so far this year, the data showed.

Although wheat marketing year runs from April-March, the bulk of procurement is done in first three months. FCI and state agencies undertake purchase at the MSP.

As per the second estimate, wheat output is likely to decline by 1.42 per cent to 97.11 million tonnes in the 2017-18 crop year.