Punjab tops in transporting food grains during lock down

Punjab tops the tally for transporting maximum food grains, accounting 46% of the total 16.94 lakh tonnes of food grains moved across the country to feed the poor during lock down. Haryana (18%), Telangana (12%) and Chhattisgarh (7%) are the other major states from where food grains were moved to different parts of the country.
Food Corporation of India, the central agency which procures food grains for government and transports it to states, set a new record in single day movement by moving 70 rakes carrying 1.93 lakh tonnes continuously for two days on Friday and Saturday.

“During the 12 days since start of lock down, FCI has carried out average movement of 1.41 lakh tonnes of food grain per day as against the pre-lockdown daily average of about 0.8 lakh tonnes,” informed a senior FCI official.

Among the consuming states, maximum food grains were transported to Uttar Pradesh (2.07 lakh tonnes) followed by Bihar (1.96 lakh tonnes), West Bengal (1.65 lakh tonnes) and Karnataka (1.57 lakh tonnes).

As on April 4, 2020, FCI is having 55.47 million tonnes of food grains (31.23 million tonnes rice and 24.24 million tonnes wheat) in the central pool.

The government is providing 5 kg of either rice or wheat free for next three months to 810 million poor people under PM Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana besides giving them 5 kg of food grains at subsidies rates through ration shops under National Food Security Act.

“In addition to that we are also providing wheat and rice directly, without going through the e-auction route, to flour millers and bulk buyers through state governments,” the official said.