Clear Weather Signals Acceleration in Wheat Procurement

20-Apr-2026 06:03 PM

New Delhi. The weather has turned clear and warmer in the major wheat-producing states—Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan—signaling an acceleration in the pace of government wheat procurement.

Quality standards for wheat have been relaxed in Rajasthan, Haryana, and Punjab, thereby enabling government procurement of wheat containing up to 50 percent discolored or lusterless grains, and up to 15 percent shriveled or broken grains.

However, procurement agencies have been instructed to segregate these stocks of lower-quality wheat. The government maintains that while this wheat retains all its nutritional properties, it cannot be stored for extended periods; therefore, the sooner it is distributed, the better.

Since wholesale market prices for wheat are currently trading below the Minimum Support Price (MSP), farmers have begun arriving at government procurement centers in large numbers with their produce.

With the exception of Haryana, wheat arrivals in other major producing states began with a delay; however, supplies are now flowing in robustly.

Provided the weather remains clear going forward, government procurement operations are expected to proceed without hindrance. The government has set a procurement target of 303.37 lakh tonnes of wheat.