Sufficient stock of wheat available due to better government procurement
09-Jun-2025 05:12 PM

New Delhi. The Food Corporation of India (FCI) and its associated state agencies procured a total of 299.30 lakh tonnes of wheat nationwide as of June 5 during the Rabi Marketing Season 2025. This accounts for 90 percent of the revised procurement target of 333 lakh tonnes.
Punjab, Haryana, and Madhya Pradesh contributed over 95 percent of their respective procurement targets, while Rajasthan slightly exceeded its target. However, in Uttar Pradesh, procurement reached only 34 percent of the target.
Government warehouses already had a significant amount of wheat stock from the previous season, and this year’s procurement from farmers has been stronger.
As a result, the central pool has an ample supply of wheat. This ensures sufficient availability for distribution under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana, and also allows the government to offload around 50–60 lakh tonnes of wheat through the Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS).
The Union Agriculture Ministry has projected domestic wheat production to rise sharply to a record 1175.10 lakh tonnes in the 2024–25 Rabi season.
On this basis, the Food Ministry anticipates a large surplus for domestic use. Traders, stockists, flour millers, and processors have also purchased substantial quantities, and large producers are reportedly holding good reserves.
When wheat prices began to rise in the open market, the government imposed a stockholding limit to curb hoarding. This has created downward pressure on prices in some mandis.
If market prices do not stabilize, the government is prepared to begin selling wheat from its reserves through OMSS. Since most of the surplus held by farmers has already been sold, the government is well-positioned to act without delay.