With the union food ministry planning to expand wheat pool in Northern states including Uttar Pradesh, the Yogi Adityanath government has stepped up efforts to achieve its procurement target of 6 million tonnes (MT) in the current rabi marketing season 2024-25.
The minimum support price (MSP) of wheat in the current season is Rs 2,275 per quintal (100 kg).
In wake of the upcoming 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the UP government has hiked the number of procurement centres by 10 percent to over 6,400.
The Centre has already announced to boost wheat purchase from ‘non-traditional’ states of UP, Rajasthan and Bihar with the union food ministry targetting wheat procurement of 31 MT pan India.
Recently, UP chief secretary Durga Shankar Mishra asked officials to personally meet farmers in the villages to motivate them towards a faster procurement process.
The Centre is working with the three states to augment procurement to supplement the food grain poll under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana and other welfare schemes.