Punjab wheat procurement crosses 94L metric tonnes

Patiala: Punjab's wheat procurement operations surged ahead on Saturday, with cumulative arrivals crossing 94,11,200 metric tonnes, achieving 72% of the state's estimated total purchase benchmark of this season. A single-day arrival of 6,21,397 MT sustained the season's strong trajectory.Progressive procurement under the current season reached 90,17,811 MT, with govt agencies accounting for 89,70,433 MT and private traders contributing 47,378 MT. Saturday's procurement was recorded at 6,23,697 MT, with govt agencies procuring 6,14,170 MT while traders added 9,526 MT.Agency wise, Pungrain continued as the leading buyer among govt bodies, operating in tandem with FCI, Markfed , PSWC and Punsup to ensure comprehensive mandi coverage and intake of produce. An unsold quantity of 3,93,388 MT was also recorded, which procurement officers were working to clear on priority, said the officials.Progressive lifting reached 29,02,220 MT by the evening of April 25, with day's lifting of 4,70,377 MT, an increase over the previous day's figure of 4,45,334 MT. The total unlifted quantity against the 72-hour norm stood at 38,17,420 MT, with a grand total of 60,68,213 MT remaining unlifted.Among districts, Pathankot recorded the strongest lifting efficiency at 64.91%, fol%lowed by Ludhiana East at 63.88% and Ludhiana West at 62.56%. Mansa recorded 61.71%. Amritsar recorded the lowest lifting percentage at 25.47%, followed by Tarn Taran at 30.12% and Moga at 34.08%.Mohali topped the arrival chart at 96% of its estimated benchmark, followed by Patiala and Kapurthala, both at 88%, and Fatehgarh Sahib at alongwith Sangrur recorded 80%, while Ropar improved to 81%.In absolute volume, Patiala led with 8,11,230 MT of progressive arrival, followed by Sangrur at 7,72,765 MT and Bathinda at 6,27,702 MT. Gurdaspur, at 51%, and Hoshiarpur at 59%, remained below the state average and were expected to see higher inflows in the coming days as harvesting advanced in the sub-montane belt.Overall, the state's progressive arrival of 94,11,200 MT marked a gain of over 6.21 lakh MT in a single day, with the season-to-date figure standing at 72% of the prior-year benchmark, an improvement of four percentage points over the 68% recorded on April 24.On the financial front, payment approvals to farmers reached Rs 19,976.44 crore against a total payment due of Rs 19,209.19 crore, surpassing the due amount and reflecting the state's commitment to the 48-hour disbursement norm. Actual payment made to farmer bank accounts stood at Rs 17,749.59 crore, with the 48-hour payment norm compliance recorded at 103.99%."While marginally lower than the 106.63% recorded on April 24, the compliance rate remained above 100% threshold. BKU Ekta Azad union leader in Nabha, Gamdoor Singh said, "Farmers are now getting timely payments although earlier the situation was different as they had to wait for days. As the grain markets are filled with procured wheat, the arhtiyas (commission agents) and labourers are facing the difficulties due to slow lifting."