Punjab and Haryana High Court seeks clarification from Centre on rice storage, hybrid paddy testing

The Punjab and Haryana High Court today directed the Union of India (UOI) to file a detailed reply on the availability of storage space for rice and the testing protocols for hybrid paddy varieties.

“Additional Solicitor-General of India Satya Pal Jain is directed to seek instructions and file reply essentially on two aspects i.e. availability of space for storage of rice and testing of hybrid paddy variety for outturn ratio,” the division bench of Chief Justice Sheel Nagu and Justice Anil Kshetarpal asserted.

The court also fixed October 29 as the next date of hearing in the case, granting Jain time to furnish a comprehensive reply on the UOI’s behalf. Petitioner Sunpreet Singh appeared in person, while the state of Punjab was represented by Punjab Advocate-General Gurminder Singh, with Additional Advocate-General JS Gill and Saurav Khurana.

As the matter came up for hearing, a reply by Food Corporation of India’s Punjab regional office was placed before the bench. Among other things, it said 8 lakh metric tonne (LMT) stock of wheat/rice has already been moved out of Punjab region till date in October. Another 5 LMT was further expected to be moved out by the month end. Besides this, “space of around 40 LMT was likely to he created for acceptance of rice up to December”.

“The movement of rice depends on the demand and consumption in the consuming states under the National Food Security Act and other welfare schemes of the Government of India, and Punjab is dispatching almost all the rice to consuming state for further consumption. All efforts are being made to provide for adequate storage space for acceptance of rice in the subsequent months,” it was added. The bench was also told that the state had also been requested to get the repairing done in godowns available with them.