Only 26% wheat lifted as mandis choke despite high procurement

Bathinda: Even as Punjab has procured nearly two-thirds of its estimated wheat arrivals this season, slow lifting continues to choke mandis, with only about 26% of the crop moved so far.Against the season target of 122 lakh metric tonnes, arrivals have reached 80.23 lakh tonnes, of which 75.98 lakh tonnes (94%), have already been purchased. However, lifting remains sluggish at 19.86 lakh tonnes, leaving large stocks piled up across mandis.On Thursday, arrivals stood at 8.65 lakh tonnes and procurement at 8.63 lakh tonnes, nearly matching the inflow. Lifting during the day was 4.52 lakh tonnes. Overall lifting stands at 26.1%, up from 22.8% a day earlier, but still far below the required pace.Unsold wheat stood at 4.25 lakh tonnes by evening. Of the total procurement, central agency FCI has bought just 1.39 lakh tonnes (1.83%), while private traders purchased 27,907 tonnes.With procurement proceeding smoothly but lifting lagging, congestion in mandis is emerging as the key concern in the ongoing rabi marketing season.