Govt procures around 695.67 lakh tonne paddy so far

New Delhi: The Centre has procured 695.67 lakh tonne of paddy so far in the ongoing 2021-22 marketing year at minimum support price (MSP) from over 94 lakh farmers across the country, the food ministry said on Monday.

"Till now about 94.15 lakh farmers have been benefited with an MSP value of Rs 1,36,350.74 crore," the ministry said in a statement. About 695.67 lakh tonne of paddy has been procured till February 20 of the ongoing 2021-22 marketing year, it said.

Out of the total procurement undertaken so far, maximum 186.85 lakh tonne of paddy has been procured from Punjab, followed by 92.01 lakh tonne from Chhattisgarh, 70.22 lakh tonne from Telangana, 55.30 lakh tonne from Haryana and 64 lakh tonne from Uttar Pradesh till February 20 of the ongoing marketing year.

The paddy marketing season normally begins from October and runs through September.

During the 2020-21 marketing season, the government procured 895.83 lakh tonne of paddy at an MSP value of Rs 1,69,133.26 crore. The government undertakes procurement operations through state-run Food Corporation of India (FCI) as well as state agencies. The government buys largely paddy and wheat to protect farmers with MSP as well as use the procured grains for distribution through ration shops for the poor beneficiaries registered under the National Food Security Act at highly subsidized rates.