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Informist, Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025

 

MUMBAI – The government has fixed the price of rice for sale to ethanol distilleries under the open market sale scheme of the Food Corp. of India at INR 2,800 per 100 kg till Mar. 31, the Department of Food and Public Distribution said in a letter to FCI on Tuesday. This is the same as the reserve price for the sale of rice to private parties and cooperatives through e-auction.

 

The distilleries have been demanding to fix the price of rice sold to them at around INR 2,100-2,200 per 100 kg.  

 

In August, the government allowed ethanol distilleries to participate in FCI's weekly rice auctions and said the distilleries can buy a maximum of 2.3 million tonnes of grain from the auctions, reversing an earlier decision. The government had in July 2023 stopped grain-based distilleries from producing ethanol using rice procured from FCI. However, given the surplus availability of rice with FCI, it has allowed the use of rice as a feedstock for ethanol again.

 

The government had also removed curbs on rice exports in October amid ample rice stocks in the country. Rice stocks at the Centre's pool were up 52.3% on year at 28.03 million tonnes as of Dec. 1, according to data from the nodal food procurement agency. 

 

The government has fixed the reserve price for the sale of rice to private parties and cooperatives through e-auction and to small private parties from FCI depots at INR 2,800 per 100 kg. The sale of rice to state governments and state-owned corporations without participating in e-auction is also INR 2,800 per 100 kg. 

 

However, the sale of rice to central cooperative organisations for sale under the 'Bharat' brand through their own stores or mobile vans or big chain retailers was set at INR 2,400 per 100 kg. Similarly, the price of rice for sale to community kitchens would be priced at INR 2,400 per 100 kg, according to the letter.  End

 

Reported by J. Navya Sruthi and Afra Abubacker

Edited by Saji George Titus

 

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