New Delhi: With unseasonal rains and hailstorms causing widespread damage to standing crops across several states, Congress president Sonia Gandhi has written a letter to Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Ram Vilas Paswan seeking relaxation in guidelines for procurement of wheat.
“I request the Centre to relax specifications, particularly with regard to moisture content, for procurement of wheat,” Sonia wrote in the letter.
“Existing manual of FCI (Food Corporation of India) specifies that if moisture content in rabi wheat crop exceeds 14%, the government would reject procuring such wheat. Additionally, a discount would be levied if the moisture content is 12-14%,” the Congress president wrote.
“In normal circumstances such specifications may hold, but over the past few weeks unseasonal rains have severely damaged crops. I have personally visited affected areas and witnessed the acute distress that our farmers are facing,” the Congress chief noted.
She stressed that “extraordinary situation calls for a suspension of regulations which are enforceable in ordinary conditions”.
Union Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh today stated that the recent spate of unseasonal rainfall has damaged standing crops in 14 states and may lead to 4-5% loss in the wheat harvest.
