Bumper production is needed for at least two years to overcome the wheat crisis
24-Jun-2024 07:56 PM
New Delhi. The Union Agriculture Ministry has estimated that the domestic production of wheat will increase from the record level of 1105 lakh tonnes in the 2022-23 season to an all-time high of 1129 lakh tonnes in the current season of 2023-24.
The ministry says that this time there was a tremendous increase in the average yield rate of wheat in Punjab, Haryana and Western Uttar Pradesh.
But a look at the actual situation shows that the government procurement of wheat in these three provinces remained far behind the set target. It is worth noting that no major increase was made in this target either.
On the other hand, there has been a huge decline in wheat production and government procurement in Madhya Pradesh. In Rajasthan too, the procurement has been much less than the set target.
To ensure maximum procurement to increase the central buffer stock, the government had increased the minimum support price of wheat by Rs 150 from Rs 2125 per quintal for the 2022-23 season to Rs 2275 per quintal for the 2023-24 season, but its actual procurement could reach 265-266 lakh tonnes,
which is 3-4 lakh tonnes more than the total procurement of 262 lakh tonnes last year. In Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, wheat was purchased at the rate of Rs 2400 per quintal with an additional bonus of Rs 125, but still the procurement quantity could not reach an encouraging level.
Industry-trade sector analysts believe that the government estimate of wheat production is much higher than the reality and hence the Food Ministry has difficulty in correctly assessing its demand and supply equation. In fact, to overcome the wheat crisis,
it is necessary to have bumper production of wheat in the state during at least two consecutive Rabi seasons. The ban on the export of wheat and its value-added products has been in place since 2022, yet its domestic market price is high and strong. In such a situation,
it is difficult to believe that the domestic production of wheat has reached a new record level in the current Rabi season of 2023-24.