States give thumbs down to subsidised wheat plan

    There was an increase of Re 1.00 a kg to Rs 18.00 a kg in Chennai and by Rs 2.00 a kg to Rs 22.00 a kg in Thiruvananthapuram. However, there was a decline of Re 1 to Rs 16 a kg in Bangalore.    According to the data maintained by the consumer affairs ministry, between September 2008 and February 2009, wheat prices remain stable in major cities such as Delhi (Rs 13 a kg), Lucknow (Rs 11.80 a kg), Ahmedabad (Rs 13 a kg), Mumbai (Rs 15 a kg), Patna (Rs 11 a kg), Guwahati (Rs 13 a kg) and Hyderabad (Rs 14 a kg).     At the same time, he maintained that wheat prices in the country remained stable because of record production and procurement last year. India produced a record 78.57 million tonnes (mt) of wheat in 2007-08 which helped the Centre to procure 22.6 mt, also a record.     Unless there is demand why should flour millers lift the wheat he asked.     The government official wondered why the response was poor when Food Corporation of India (FCI) has been able to sell 11.55 lakh tonnes to bulk consumers like flour millers in states under OMSS during the same period.     Tamil Nadu has lifted 49,483 tonnes out of 50,000 tonnes allotted to it. Other states that have taken delivery include Nagaland (6,500 tonnes), Maharashtra (6,312 tonnes), Assam (4,148 tonnes), Meghalaya and Dadra and Nagar Haveli (1,000 tonnes each).

STATES and Union Territories have lifted less than 70,000 tonnes of wheat under the Central Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS) even as the Union government wanted to offload over 9 lakh tonnes at subsidised rates to keep prices under check.
    The scheme launched by the Centre last September was allowed to lapse in February because of poor response, a senior government official said.
    The Centre had allocated 9.09 lakh tonnes of wheat on September 17, 2008 under OMSS specifying a fixed quantity to each state at a particular price for supply to retail consumers through state agencies and cooperatives.
    After two months, it allowed states to sell the wheat to small processors as there was a poor response from states. Subsequently, the offtake improved and it was 68,969.18 tonnes till Februaryend, according to the official.