Procurement

Overview

The Government policy of procurement of Food grains has broad objectives of ensuring MSP to the farmers and availability of food grains to the weaker sections at affordable prices. It also ensures effective market intervention thereby keeping the prices under check and also adding to the overall food security of the country. 

FCI, the nodal central agency of Government of India, along with other State Agencies undertakes procurement of wheat and paddy under price support scheme . Coarse grains are procured by State Government Agencies for Central Pool as per the direction issued by Government of India on time to time. The procurement under Price Support is taken up mainly to ensure remunerative prices to the farmers for their produce which works as an incentive for achieving better production. 

Before the harvest during each Rabi / Kharif Crop season, the Government of India announces the minimum support prices (MSP) for procurement on the basis of the recommendation of the Commission of Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) which along with other factors, takes into consideration the cost of various agricultural inputs and the reasonable margin for the farmers for their produce. 

To facilitate procurement of food grains, FCI and various State Agencies in consultation with the State Government establish a large number of purchase centers at various mandis and key points. The number of centers and their locations are decided by the State Governments, based on various parameters, so as to maximize the MSP operations. For instance for wheat procurement 21,106 procurement centers in RMS 2021-22 & 74,684 procurement centers for procurement of paddy in KMS 2020-21 were operated. Such extensive & effective price support operations have resulted in sustaining the income of farmers over a period and in providing the required impetus for higher investment in agriculture sector for improved productivity. 

Whatever stocks which are brought to the Purchase centers falling within the Government of India’s specifications are purchased at the fixed support price. If the farmers get prices better than the support price from other buyers such as traders / millers etc., the farmers are free to sell their produce to them. FCI and the State Government/its agencies ensure that the farmers are not compelled to sell their produce below support price.