The Centre on Monday said it set a record in wheat procurement at 43.32 million tonnes (mt) so far in the current 2021-22 rabi marketing season.

       In paddy procurement too, the government has procured a record 86.20 mt till July 4 of the 2020-21 kharif marketing season (October-September).The previous record in wheat procurement was 38.99 mt achieved in the 2020-21 season (April-March).

       Food Corporation Chairman and Managing Director Atish Chandra said Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, and Jammu and Kashmir recorded their best wheat procurement while a record 4.91 million farmers benefitted this year against 4.33 million last year.

       “An all-time high amount of Rs 84,369.19 crore was transferred directly into farmers’ accounts across India,” Chandra said.

       In a related development, the Centre said that the remaining four states of Assam, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, and West Bengal would come under the One Nation One Ration Card scheme soon.