Govt to release 5m tonnes of wheat
In yet another attempt to control high food inflation, hovering at 16.9 per cent, the empowered group of ministers (EGOM) on food on Friday decided to release 5 million tonnes of wheat over the next 10 months under the open market sale scheme.
However, the draft Food Security Bill, which aims to provide a fixed quantity of food grain at Rs 3 per kg every month to families below the poverty line, did not come up for discussion at the meeting.
The EGoM, headed by finance minister Pranab Mukherjee, deferred a decision to impose import duty on wheat and sugar in the wake of soaring food prices. Sources said around 30 per cent import duty on wheat and 15 per cent on sugar was proposed. Besides, the group also deferred a decision on a reduction in the percentage of levy sugar from 20 per cent to 16 per cent.
The additional wheat under the open market sale scheme will be given at prices lower than market price. Wheat will be sold from government warehouses between July and March at Rs 12.54 per kg against the retail price of around Rs 14 per kg in Delhi, said officials.
Regarding the open market sale of wheat, the government has decided to ease the buying mechanism by offering wheat to both bulk and small consumers.
The government will offer wheat to small traders directly from Food Corporation of India while bulk consumers, like flour mills, will get it via tenders, said sources.
The government has been selling wheat in the open market since October 2009. As much as 1.2 million tonnes of wheat has been lifted as of now out of two million tonnes allocated for the open market operation. India imported 1.58 lakh tonnes of wheat last year and two lakh tonnes during April-May this fiscal.
Sources said although sugar prices have dropped in the last few months, they are still high as compared to last year, sources said.
India has imported 6 million tonnes of sugar since February 2009.
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