New Delhi: Union Food Minister Pralhad Joshi on Tuesday urged state governments to create additional foodgrain storage facilities in view of the sharp increase in procurement of wheat and paddy across the country.
Replying to supplementary questions during Question Hour in the Rajya Sabha, Joshi said that foodgrain losses during transit and storage have declined significantly due to improvements in infrastructure and the adoption of technology across the public distribution system (PDS).
“As far as storage and transit losses are concerned, they have come down considerably, especially due to technology-driven interventions in the overall system,” the minister said.
Joshi noted that procurement of wheat and paddy has risen multifold over the past 11 years. Paddy procurement stood at 478 lakh tonnes in 2014–15, for which farmers were paid ₹66,949 crore as minimum support price (MSP). In 2024–25, procurement increased to 813 lakh tonnes, with MSP payments amounting to ₹1.88 lakh crore.
The minister attributed the rise in procurement to favourable government policies, including a substantial increase in MSP under the Modi government. “We have excess quantities of paddy and wheat in the country today, and states are demanding higher procurement levels,” he said.
Joshi said the Centre is providing financial support and facilitating the creation of new storage infrastructure, and appealed to all chief ministers to prioritise building storage capacity.
He also informed the House that there are no pending dues to the West Bengal government at present. However, he flagged that some states are not issuing receipts to beneficiaries and urged them to address the issue.
In a written reply, the minister clarified that the Centre has not imposed any curbs on paddy procurement by state governments. Procurement estimates are finalised after consultations with states before the start of each marketing season, taking into account factors such as estimated production, past procurement levels and marketable surplus.