Centre raises wheat procurement target to 34.5 million tonnes amid erratic weather

NEW DELHI: The Centre has raised its wheat procurement target from 30.33 million tonnes to 34.5 million tonnes for the 2026–27 marketing season, amid crop damage from unseasonal rains and higher offtake demand from states, Sanjeev Chopra, secretary, Department of Food and Public Distribution, said on Friday.

“We have raised procurement targets across the key states of Madhya Pradesh from 7.8 million tonnes to 10 million tonnes, Uttar Pradesh from 1 million tonnes to 2.5 million tonnes, and Rajasthan from 2.1 million tonnes to 2.35 million tonnes. The procurement targets from Bihar have also increased,” said Chopra.

The government has also introduced QR code-enabled gunny bags for wheat and paddy procurement to improve traceability and curb leakages in the public distribution system, allowing authorities to track movement of procured grain from mandis to storage points and onward to distribution channels.

Chopra said the food ministry last week relaxed procurement rules for wheat affected by unseasonal rains in Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan, raising the permissible limit for shrivelled and broken grains to 15% from 6% and allowing up to 70% for lustre loss.

The Centre has also resumed wheat procurement in Delhi after more than five years, following a request from Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta.

“Delhi’s wheat production is small and is largely concentrated in areas such as Najafgarh and Narela. We have allowed procurement of the grain after the pandemic,” said Chopra.

The higher procurement target comes despite erratic weather conditions raising concerns over output in key producing states, increasing the need for government offtake to maintain buffer stocks and ensure supplies under welfare schemes.

Official estimates project wheat output at a record 120.21 million tonnes for the 2026–27 rabi marketing season, up about 2.26 million tonnes from last year’s 117.94 million tonnes. However, these projections were finalized before unseasonal rains affected crops in several states.

The government has not yet released an assessment of crop damage due to the adverse weather.

An independent survey commissioned by the Roller Flour Millers’ Federation of India and conducted by AgriWatch estimates wheat production at 110.63 million tonnes, citing widespread crop damage in Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan.

“By scaling up procurement, the government aims to stabilize market availability, support farmers through assured purchases, and maintain sufficient reserves for distribution under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) and other schemes,” said Rakesh Arrawatia, professor, Institute of Rural Management Anand (IRMA), Gujarat, and Dean, School of Cooperative Banking and Finance.

“Higher procurement would also give the Centre greater flexibility to intervene in the market in case of price volatility in the coming months,” Arrawatia said.

Earlier, anticipating a bumper harvest, the government set a procurement target of 30.33 million tonnes of wheat at MSP from major producing states, including Punjab (12.2 million tonnes), Haryana (7.2 million tonnes), Madhya Pradesh (7.8 million tonnes), Uttar Pradesh (1 million tonnes) and Rajasthan (2.1 million tonnes). It has also permitted exports of 5 million tonnes of wheat and one million tonnes of wheat products in phases.