The national grain storage policy may aim for scientific stocks management but the Food Corporation’s own godown have become the proverbial Augean stables when it comes to holding large quanties of grain which no one can eat. At the beginning of the new procurement season, the Food Corporation of India is holding 93.5 lakh tonnes wheat, 17.13 lakh tonnes of rice and 1.8lakh tonnes paddy. More importantly, the tax payer needs to know what percentage of the Budgetary allocation to FCI, given as the annual food subsidy, is spend on the storage and the interests cost of stocking of grains which is unfit for human consumption. After all FCI, is holding 1.46 lakh tonnes of damaged Foodgrains, which has an economic cost of a whopping Rs 130.58 crore. FCI received Rs 7500 crore as food subsidy in’97-98, which has now ballooned to Rs 12,042crore and growing. At present, FCI is holding 2.30 lakh tonnes of grains (wheat, rice and paddy) which is more than five years old, that is procured by FCI in’96 or even earlier. With another bumper crop already at its doorstep, FCI now has little time to make significant amends. However, it can hasten the process of clearing space in its godown by taking an immediate decision on how to sell of the oldest stocks. Without this, it simply cannot do justice to farmers this year, while precious subsidized grain lies rotting in the dark.
Agri.
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