Wheat purchase to go on till May 1

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, March 27

The Centre has approved Punjab Government’s request to reschedule wheat procurement in the wake of a Covid-19 surge in the state and resultant challenges and restrictions.

“The request made by Government of Punjab for rescheduling wheat procurement period during rabi marketing season (RMS) 2021-22 due to late maturity of crop and a surge in Covid-19 cases in the state has been considered and approved by Government of India,” a government statement said today. The wheat procurement period in Punjab has now been rescheduled to April 10 to May 31, 2021, in place of April 1 to May 25, 2021. Meanwhile, the SAD has condemned the Congress government for delaying procurement by 10 days, saying it must begin from April 1. Senior leaders Prem Singh Chandumajra and Daljit Singh Cheema accused the government of playing a fixed match with the Centre to teach a lesson to protesting farmers by not protesting in time against deliberate tightening of specifications for procurement of foodgrain by the FCI.