Food and Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Tuesday said the Centre plans to sell an additional 25-30 lakh tonnes of wheat and rice through ration shops at cheaper rates.
This move is aimed at providing relief to the common man from double-digit food inflation.
The minister noted that the crop condition in most parts of the country is good and said there will be a substantial improvement in planting due to good rains in the last few days.
“I am going to the EGoM to discuss about offering 25-30 lakh tonnes of rice and wheat to the state government for supply under PDS. This will be over and above the existing allocation,” Pawar told reporters in New Delhi.
The minister said that the proposal would be discussed in the meeting of the Empowered Group of Ministers on Food headed by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, which is likely to be convened shortly.
The state governments have been demanding an increase in foodgrain allocation under the PDS, he added.
Food Corporation of India, the nodal agency for procurement and distribution of foodgrains, has nearly 60 million tonnes of wheat and rice in its buffer stock and the agency is facing a space crunch.
Sale of foodgrains would help ease pressure.
Annual food inflation stood at 12.81 percent for the week ended 3rd July.
In May this year, the Centre had announced the sale of an additional 30 lakh tonnes of wheat and rice through ration shops during the June-November period at Rs 8.42 and Rs 11.85 per kg, respectively.
Although the rates for the additional foodgrains were far below the acquisition cost, they were slightly more than what Below Poverty Line (BPL) and Above Poverty Line (APL) families pay for their regular quota.
BPL families get wheat at Rs 4.15 per kg and rice at Rs 5.65 per kg under the regular quota.
At present, the government provides 35 kg of rice and wheat to BPL families every month and 10-35 kg for others.
As of now, there are 18 crore ration card holders.
On kharif sowing operations, Pawar said, “Due to good rains in the last three-four days, there will be a substantial improvement in planting. Crop condition in most parts of the country is good.”
The minister had earlier said that there would be a bumper production this year and the area under cultivation would be more than the last two years.
Pawar said the Home Ministry has sent a team to Punjab and Haryana to assess the crop damage on account of floods.
