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Informist, Saturday, Apr. 4, 2026

 

By Afra Abubacker

 

NEW DELHI – The government's wheat procurement during the 2026-27 rabi marketing season has fallen 61% on year to 24,000 tonnes as of Wednesday, amid higher private purchases and delayed harvesting in several key producing states. While procurement has begun at a slow pace in Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, and Rajasthan, operations are yet to start in major wheat growers such as Madhya Pradesh and Haryana, a government official said. The government has set a target of procuring about 30.34 million tonnes of wheat by June end, with a bulk of purchases expected from next month as arrivals start increasing.

 

Although the wheat procurement window typically runs from Apr. 1 to Jun. 30, the government had advanced procurement timelines this year, with purchases scheduled to begin from Mar. 10 in Rajasthan, Mar. 15 in Madhya Pradesh, and Mar. 17 in Uttar Pradesh. Procurement in Haryana was scheduled to start this month, but it has not yet begun in the state as well as in Madhya Pradesh.

 

"We were expecting a delay of 10-15 days in harvesting across all major wheat-growing states," the official told Informist. However, unseasonal rainfall and hailstorms in March led to waterlogging and increased crop moisture levels, leading to longer drying periods and subsequently, delaying harvesting.

 

As of Wednesday, farmers across the country brought to mandis 155,682 tonnes of wheat, down 38% from 250,946 tonnes reported on the same date last year. Of this, the government has only procured 24,000 tonnes, or 15%, indicating that farmers have sold the bulk of arrivals to private traders rather than to government agencies. However, this is not because of higher open market rates. In the key market of Kota, Rajasthan, wheat is priced at INR 2,320-INR 2,500 per 100 kg, below the minimum support price of INR 2,585 per 100 kg set for 2026-27.

 

Wheat prices have fallen over quality issues as most arrivals have high moisture content due to unseasonal rains. The government procures only crops with moisture content up to 12%. In addition, the number of open markets is higher than the government's procurement centres, giving more accessibility to private traders to purchase wheat.

 

 

GUNNY BAG SHORTAGES

Meanwhile, concerns have emerged over the availability of packaging material required for procurement, particularly plastic woven sacks or gunny bags, amid disruptions in global supply chains.

 

According to industry sources, the war in West Asia has disrupted supplies of polypropylene raffia granules, a key raw material used to manufacture plastic sacks. India relies on imports of this key input, making domestic availability sensitive to global disruptions. Government agencies primarily use jute bags, supplemented by high-density polyethylene or polypropylene sacks, for wheat procurement.

 

Asked about the potential shortage of gunny bags, the official mentioned above said that procurement centres currently have adequate carry-over stocks of bags from last year. "Any shortages, if at all, are likely to emerge only from May or mid-May, when wheat arrivals start peaking," he added.

 

To address this shortage amid supply disruptions, the government has asked fair price shops to sell the used bags back to procurement agencies, instead of selling them in the open market. "The district administrations will ensure that these bags are sold to the government itself," the official said, adding that this will increase the availability of bags for procurement.

 

In addition, the government has prioritised the allocation of polypropylene granules to plastic manufacturing units, directing them to produce bags for agricultural packages, and restricted diversion of the raw material for other industrial uses.  End

 

Edited by Tanima Banerjee

  

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