Low dispatch creates space crunch in FCI godowns
As the delivery of custom-milled rice (CMR) from rice mills begins on Saturday in Haryana, Food Corporation of India (FCI) godowns in the state are facing a significant storage crisis. About 53.43 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) of paddy has arrived in state mandis.
Decline in state’s share
Haryana’s share in total dispatches dropped from 15.16% to 9.70% from 2022-23 to 2023-24, Telangana’s share surged from 14.77% to 26.21%. Punjab’s share also declined significantly, from 51.77% to 31.38% during the same period.
Although the paddy procurement season concluded today and proceeded smoothly despite initial challenges, a major issue has emerged — a severe space crunch for the incoming rice deliveries from millers.
In line with the Central Government’s mandate, 1,320 millers are expected to deliver around 40 LMT of fortified rice — enriched with iron, folic acid and vitamin B-12 — to FCI godowns by March 15. “Yet, current projections reveal that by the end of December, storage will be at full capacity, leaving no vacant space for additional deliveries,” a senior FCI official from Delhi said.
FCI procures paddy from farmers at MSP. The paddy is milled into rice by millers and then either stored or dispatched under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) for distribution to various states.
“The root of the problem lies in the lack of dispatches from Haryana to other states for the Public Distribution System (PDS) distribution, especially by rail,” another senior FCI official from Karnal explained on the condition of anonymity.
During the 2020-21 kharif marketing season (KMS), 37.89 LMT of rice reached FCI godowns in Haryana at an average monthly dispatch of 4.38 LMT. In 2021-22 KMS, 37.06 LMT was received, and monthly dispatches averaged 3.23 LMT.
In 2022-23 KMS, 39.77 LMT reached godowns at a monthly average dispatch of 4.24 LMT. In 2023-24 KMS, 39.42 LMT of rice was procured, but dispatches plummeted to just 1.54 LMT. Haryana’s share in the total rice dispatches from all regions fell from 15.16 per cent in 2022-23 to 9.70 per cent in 2023-24. Similarly, Punjab witnessed its monthly average dispatch being 10.05 LMT in 2021-22, 14.40 LMT in 2022-23, and in 2023-24, it fell to a mere 4.98 LMT. The millers’ association in Haryana has raised concerns about the space crunch with state officials. Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini also wrote to Union Minister of Consumer Affairs Pralhad Joshi on September 26, highlighting that 58.44 LMT of wheat and rice stocks are currently lying against a total covered storage capacity of approximately 56.70 LMT in Haryana.
“Thus, there is no space available to accommodate fresh rice, which would significantly hamper the procurement operations and delivery of CMR in the upcoming season,” Saini noted. He emphasised the urgent need to move 4.5 LMT of rice and 5.5 LMT of wheat monthly by rail and road over the next four months to create space.
Despite recent high-level interventions, the state government’s offer to place its 16 LMT capacity at the disposal of FCI falls short, an FCI official stated.
