Bhopal : Madhya Pradesh has set a new record in the country in procurement of wheat at support price. Till June 15, one crore 29 lakh 28 thousand metric tonnes of wheat has been procured in Madhya Pradesh. This is an all-time record in wheat procurement by any state in the whole country. Till date, this much quantity of wheat has not been procured by any state.
Madhya Pradesh government has safely transported one crore 25 lakh metric tonnes of procured wheat to the warehouses, which is 97 percent of the total procurement. So far, 100 percent transportation work has been completed in 45 districts. Transportation work is being undertaken in the remaining 7 districts at a fast pace. In Indore and Ujjain districts, transportation work is being undertaken on a war footing by engaging both the agencies Markfed and Civil Supplies Corporation. Payment of about Rs 22 thousand crores has been deposited against the procured wheat in the accounts of 14 lakh 88 thousand farmers.
Chief Minister Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan gave top priority to the management of wheat procurement. The Chief Minister reviewed the wheat procurement daily from March 23 onwards through 75 consecutive meetings and video conferencing with the district collectors. The team engaged in procurement work, Corona warriors and farmers of Madhya Pradesh have proved to be winners, leaving behind the hindrance of Corona lockdown and Nisarga.
The Madhya Pradesh government formulated an effective strategy for the procurement of wheat. Arrangements of gunny bags and storage were made, setting a target of 100 lakh metric tonnes more than the procurement made last year. Procurement work was started late from April 15 due to the adverse circumstances caused by Corona. The government was conscious that due to recession and disruptions of traffic, more procurement would have to be made from farmers than last year and in a short period. Arrangement of additional gunny bags and storage were made by the government promptly. Despite the lockdown, additional gunny bags were arranged for 25 lakh metric tonnes. Due to the planned management, there was no shortage of gunny bags despite such a huge purchase, which exceeded the target. Additional storage of 10 lakh metric tonnes was arranged while working in lockdown.
The biggest challenge was to procure more in a short period from maximum number of farmers. For this, number of procurement centres were increased to 4 thousand 529 against 3 thousand 545 opened last year. While adhering to social distancing, the system of sending SMS to farmers was ensured so that only those farmers who received the SMS reached the procurement centre. In view of the challenge of completing the purchase at the right time, for the first time, the collectors were given the facility to decide the SMS number at each centre. About 75 lakh SMSs were sent to the farmers to be vigilant towards corona and other information.
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