India’s rice procurement tops 45 mt however down 7% y-o-y

Rice procurement by Meals Company of India (FCI) reached 45.44 million tonnes (mt) as of March 31 after the 2023-24 kharif advertising season started on October 1. That is 7.3 per cent decrease from 49.01 mt procured a yr in the past. Nonetheless, rice procurement in Chhattisgarh, which ended on February 4, was 8.3 mt towards 5.87 mt final yr. It’s larger than the manufacturing estimate of seven.82 mt, elevating questions over the whole buy mechanism.

Because the procurement goal for kharif-grown rice is 52.5 mt and it’ll proceed until April 30 in Jharkhand, till Could 31 in West Bengal and as much as June 30 in Assam, the federal government is hopeful of shopping for one other 4-5 mt. That is potential if procurement picks up in West Bengal, sources stated. West Bengal, a number one producer, has reported a drop in procurement at 0.78 mt from 2.07 mt a yr in the past.

Procurement in Punjab, Haryana and different northern States received accomplished in December whereas in western Uttar Pradesh it ended on January 31 and in jap UP on February 29. The FCI has procured 12.41 mt in Punjab, which is 2 per cent larger from 12.19 mt a yr in the past and in Haryana, it’s 3.94 mt towards 3.95 mt in 2022-23.

Large hole in AP

In Uttar Pradesh, the Centre has procured 3.61 mt of rice towards 4.39 mt year-ago. Telangana’s rice buy ended decrease ate 3.17 mt towards 4.36 mt. Kharif season’s rice procurement in Odisha, which ended on March 31, was 3.95 mt, decrease from 4.42 mt a yr in the past. There’s a big drop of 36 per cent in Andhra Pradesh, the place too procurement ended, and it was 1.34 mt towards 2.1 mt a yr in the past.

The federal government had bought a complete of 56.87 mt of rice in 2022-23 from all kharif, rabi and zaid seasons.

The Agriculture Ministry has estimated the nation’s rice manufacturing from each kharif and rabi seasons 1 per cent decrease at 123.82 mt throughout 2023-24 crop yr (July-June) from 125.52 mt in 2022-23. The estimates haven’t included the zaid crop, which is sown after rabi harvest. In 2022-23, rice manufacturing from zaid season was 10.24 mt.

Rice procurement is vital to the federal government meals safety programme because it had substituted wheat within the public distribution programme at many States in 2021-22 when there was an enormous drop in procurement of wheat. Involved over 14-15 per cent inflation (y-o-y) in rice, the federal government has been holding public sale each week to dump within the open market, although the offtake could be very poor. Moreover, the federal government has began promoting Bharat rice in 10 kg bag at ₹29/kg throughout the nation.