State sets April 30 deadline for delivering rice, millers fear loss

Parvesh Sharma

Tribune News Service

Sangrur, April 1

With the Food Corporation of India (FCI) failing to deliver rice from Punjab mills to its Central pool before deadline of March 31 and the state extending deadline to April 30, the state mills are facing space crunch as 24 lakhs metric tonnes (LMTs) of paddy is still lying in them.

Rice millers fear losses and have requested the Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of the Food Corporation of India (FCI) to provide space to shift rice expeditiously.

Rice millers disclosed that in October 2018 the Punjab government had allotted total 170 LMTs of paddy, which was to be milled till March 31 by 3,800 mills of state and total 113.46 LMTs of rice was to be delivered. Millers alleged that due to lack of space in the FCI pool, the movement of rice from them to the FCI pool is slow and 24 LMTs of paddy is lying in state mills.

“We met CMD, FCI, DV Prasad in Amritsar and submitted our memorandum. The FCI deadline is June 30, but the state’s was March 31, which has been extended to April 30. We want that the FCI should also fix March 31 deadline as rise in temperature will reduce moisture in paddy leading to drop in its weight causing losses to us. The CMD has called us to Delhi for further discussion,” said Gian Chand Bhardwaj, president of the Rice Millers’ Association of Punjab.

“The extension of deadline will cause losses to all 3,800 rice millers of the state,” said Rajnish Kansal, Punjab media secretary of the association.

Punjab FCI General Manager Arshdeep Singh Thind confirmed that a meeting took place between the CMD and rice millers. “Rice millers raised their concerns with our CMD, who listened to all their grievances. Our deadline is June 30 and lifting of rice from millers of Punjab is going on,” said Thind.