To ensure hassle-free and smooth wheat procurement, Congress-led Punjab Government wants to start from the scratch. Cancelling all labour and transportation tenders issued during the erstwhile SAD-BJP rule, the government on Monday decided to invite fresh tenders by March 24.
“Fresh tenders have been invited, and Deputy Commissioners (DCs) have been directed to personally supervise the procurement process that starts on April 1,” said an official spokesperson.
The decision was taken during a high level meeting, chaired by Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh and attended by all the DCs.
It was decided that fresh tenders can be submitted by March 24 till 5 pm, and will be opened the next day by District Tender Allotment Committees, said the spokesperson.
The entire tendering process will be completed by March 31, a day before the procurement season starts.
In case re-tendering is required, the entire process shall be finalised by the committees by March 31, the spokesperson said. Capt Amarinder also directed the DCs to put in place a viable mechanism to ensure smooth and hassle-free procurement of wheat-crop. Officials should make all-out efforts to ensure timely and full procurement of every single grain of wheat from farmers, who had "suffered a harrowing time last year due to an ill-conceived agricultural policy of the erstwhile SAD-BJP government”, said Capt Amarinder.
Reiterating that his government is committed to ensure prompt and seamless wheat procurement, Capt Amarinder said that the officers must ensure that farmers do not face any inconvenience in selling their produce in mandis between April 1 and May 31.
He directed the officers concerned to arrange drinking water facilities and toilets for labourers working in the grain markets.
Punjab Mandi Board has been directed to make available electricity, moisture meters, and tarpaulins to arthiyas, crates, power cleaners, fans, generators, in all the markets by March 24, he added.
It was informed in the meeting that necessary arrangements for storage and stock article had already been completed to ensure smooth, prompt and hassle-free procurement of wheat. Besides, a network of 1,828 purchase centres has been notified by the Board.
Mandis have been allotted to six procurement agencies, namely Pungrain, Markfed, Punsup, Punjab State Warehousing Corporation, Punjab Agro Foodgrain Corporation and Food Corporation of India (FCI), as per share allocated to them by the state government.
The agencies would procure an estimated 122 lakh metric ton (lMT) of wheat during this procurement drive. The Centre has fixed Rs 1,625 per quintal as minimum support price for wheat for the current marketing season. It was also decided that the DCs will issue orders regarding grievances committee formation, as well as prohibition of movement of combines in agriculture fields for harvesting wheat during night time.To ensure timely online payment to arthiyas, PoS or swipe machines will be delivered by the banks to the procurement agencies and installed in all the mandis by March 27, after the issuance of the notification of mandis by the Punjab Mandi Board.