Season of polls: Govt races to calm wheat prices
By Our Special Correspondent
New Delhi, February 18: After Tripura, eight more states are headed for Assembly elections this year, and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Central government is racing fast to calm down wheat and flour prices. Even while vegetables’ prices have crashed this month, flour is commanding a price of Rs 35 a kg and wheat Rs 29 a kg to run against the claims of the government to have an upper hand in controlling the price rise.
The Central government with aggressive release of the public stocks of wheat in the open market along with a nudge to the state administrations to crackdown against hoarding is seeking to bring down the prices of flour and wheat in the range of Rs 21-25 a kg in a short span of time. This move is aimed to help the BJP stay in better poll health in the Assembly elections in the latter parts of the year. Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Telangana will wrap the big ticket polls this year in addition to the Northeastern states where the saffron outfit is drawing comfort from the decimation of Congress.
Food Corporation of India (FCI) will release another batch of 11.72 lakh metric tonnes (MTs) of wheat through e-auction. The exercise will take place at 620 depots in the country. This will be the third e-auction by the FCI, which currently has a stock of 13.9 MTs currently, which is close to the buffer stock norm of 13.8 MTs. The Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution in a statement said that the government has revised the reserve price for sale of wheat through ‘Open Market Sale Scheme’ throughout the country. “The reserve price of fair and average quality wheat will be Rs 2,150 per quintal under relaxed specifications,” said the Ministry. The lower uniform reserve price across the country seeks to further bring down the price of wheat and flour in the country. The third sale of wheat through e-auction will be held on Wednesday.
In the first two e-auctions a total quantity of 12.98 lakh MTs of wheat was sold out. Three rounds of auctions are likely to further cool down the wheat and flour prices. The government is expecting a bumper wheat crop in the next harvest season, which will arrive in the market by April even while the early crops from Madhya Pradesh have begun reaching the Mandis.
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