Wheat arrival picks up pace in dist

Manmeet Singh Gill

Amritsar, April 13

With the arrival of 252 Metric Tonnes (MT) of wheat in the grain markets in the district on Thursday, the harvesting of the crop has picked up steam. The grain markets in the district reported a total arrival of 308 MT so far this season.

The arrival of the crop picked up pace today as the district witnessed an arrival of merely 56 MT in the first 12 days of the procurement which started on April 1. Officials of the Mandi Board stated that a total of 32 MT of wheat has been procured till date.

Out of the total purchase so far, 7 MT wheat has been purchased by the government agencies while 25 MT has been purchased by private buyers. The Mandi Board officials stated that at present, most of the produce coming to the markets had moisture content in excess of the permissible limit. The officials has asked the farmers to bring the fully ripened crop only as otherwise they would face problems due to high moisture.

Meanwhile, Transport Minister Laljit Singh Bhullar visited the Patti, Dubli, Kot Budha, Harike and Naushehra Pannu grain markets in Tarn Taran district and interacted with farmers and commission agents. The minister also asked officials of the Food and Civil Supplies Department and the government procurement agencies to make procurement a hassle-free affair for the farmers. He instructed them to ensure timely lifting of the procured crop so that when the harvesting picks up pace there is no shortage of space in grain markets.

Bhullar said the assessment of crop loss due to untimely rains was underway and would be completed soon. The government was committed to the welfare of the farmers, that’s why it had increased the compensation amount this year by 25 per cent. The minister also accused the Central Government of not coming to the help of the farmers during this difficult time.