Wheat purchase by private buyers is likely to remain three lakh tonnes in Punjab in the ongoing procurement season, almost double of what was bought the previous season.
“This season, private purchase of wheat will remain about three lakh tonnes as State roller flour mills are aggressively buying crop from Punjab for own requirement,” Punjab Roller Flour Mill Association president Naresh Ghai said.
“Millers this year are not purchasing crop from Uttar Pradesh as crop prices are ruling above minimum support price (MSP) in UP’s grain markets,” Ghai said.
Roller flour millers have been buying wheat from UP for the last few years as wheat prices used to remain below MSP. As private buyers remain aggressive this season, their crop purchase reached 1.72 lakh tonne so far in Punjab, surpassing the previous season’s total purchase of 1.34 lakh tonne in the ongoing wheat procurement season.
There are a total of 78 flour mills in Punjab which require over 7 lakh tonne of wheat for their annual requirement.
Meanwhile, wheat procurement in Punjab is trailing by 16 per cent while crop purchase in Haryana is up by three per cent in the
ongoing Rabi marketing season 2014-15.
As Punjab witness high crop arrivals at this stage, total crop procurement stood at 82.43 lakh tonne so far as against 98.07 lakh tonne purchased in corresponding period of the previous season, officials said.
“We are witnessing daily arrivals of above eight lakh tonne in grain markets in Punjab. This time, wheat procurement is trailing because of delayed harvesting, caused by prolonged cold weather and untimely rains,” said the Food Corporation of India (Punjab).
Crop arrivals are yet to come from Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Tarn Taran, Pathankot and Kapurthala districts, he said.
“We expect total wheat procurement will remain 110-112 lakh tonne in Punjab which will end by May 12-13,” he said.