Punjab Faces Storage Crunch as Wheat Procurement Set to Surge

• Apr 10, 2025

As Punjab braces for a surge in wheat arrivals during the ongoing rabi procurement season, the Centre has moved out 40 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) of rice from storage godowns in the state. However, this is still insufficient to make room for the expected influx of 124 LMT of wheat set to arrive in the coming days.

While wheat procurement is expected to gain momentum next week, officials estimate that approximately 70 LMT will have to be stored in the open under the Covered and Plinth (CAP) method due to a shortage of covered storage space. Compounding the issue, procurement agencies are also facing a scarcity of wooden crates required for safe storage.

Work on constructing an additional 31 LMT of storage capacity—approved earlier—has yet to begin and is only expected to be completed later this year. For now, the storage infrastructure remains the same as last year: 140 LMT with the Food Corporation of India (FCI) and another 35 LMT with state-run food procurement agencies.

According to FCI Punjab region General Manager B. Srinivasan, 136 LMT of rice from the 2023 and 2024 procurement seasons is still lying in godowns. “Around 10 LMT more will be transported out of Punjab by the end of April, with 20 trains moving rice daily to recipient states,” he said.

He noted that the clearance of rice stocks has accelerated thanks to permissions for exports and sales to ethanol distilleries. So far, 39.42 LMT of rice and 40.59 LMT of older wheat stocks have already been moved out. Additionally, FCI has taken delivery of 65 LMT of rice from millers.

By April-end, godowns are expected to still hold 126 LMT of rice, which leaves space for only 35 LMT of wheat. Another 14 LMT capacity will be used for rice deliveries from millers, meaning rice movement will stretch until July—far beyond the usual March-end deadline.

With storage constraints looming, the government has decided to place 70 LMT of wheat in CAP storage and 35 LMT in godowns. To manage the surplus, another 20 LMT will be lifted directly from grain markets and dispatched to recipient states.

Efforts are also underway to identify additional storage options, including repurposing unused facilities like the defunct sugar mill at Sheron in Tarn Taran. “We are now pushing to create an additional 15 LMT of storage space, in addition to the 31 LMT already approved,” said Srinivasan.

So far, 2,035 metric tonnes (MT) of wheat have reached Punjab’s mandis, with 1,351 MT already purchased. Of this, 936 MT has been procured by the state government and 415 MT by private traders.