With the rail connectivity to Manipur, Tripura and Mizoram snapped due to mega block, the Food Corporation of India (FCI) is now planning to import rice from Myanmar to meet the requirements of the public distribution system (PDS) in the northeastern States of Mizoram and Manipur.
Executive Director (Northeast) of the FCI, Pinuel Basumatary on Monday said they are planning to import about 10,000 MT of rice to Manipur and Mizoram every month for a period of five months.
The mega block, which is being operated for six months from October 1 this year for conversion of Meter Gauge (MG) section of lumding division of the Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) from lumding to Badarpur has affected train services to Tripura, Manipur, Mizoram and Barak Valley in Assam forcing the FCI to make alternative arrangements.
"The first effort to import rice from Myanmar did not succeed due to higher prices. However, efforts are on to import the rice from the neighbouring country and if it succeeds, it will be easier to supply the rice to sustain the PDS in Mizoram and Manipur. The plan is to import about 1,00,000 MT of rice to both the States in five months time," he said.
The FCI had recently ferried 10,000 tonnes of rice in two phases from Andhra Pradesh to Tripura via Bangladesh and talks are also on to ferry another 35,000 tonnes using the same riverine route to Tripura.
"We have been trying to build up a contingency plan well ahead of the mega block. Accordingly, we worked out and an alternate plan was in place by July this year. We have already dispatched about 45,000 MT of stock to the mega block affected States in the region," Basumatary said while adding that the stock available in northeast zone of the FCI currently is about 4,00,000 MT which is sufficient to sustain PDS requirement of rice for 44 days and requirement of wheat for 53 days in northeastern States.
He also said that the FCI is also planning storage capacity addition in the northeast region, he said adding that while the present storage capacity of the FCI is 4,97,000 MT in the region it would be enhanced by another 5,19, 000 MT soon.