Bathinda: Government procurement of wheat gained further momentum in Punjab on Saturday, with over 84% of the total arrivals in mandis purchased till Saturday evening. However, concerns remain over the slow lifting of procured grain, as updated data on lifting was not shared by the state’s food, civil supplies and consumer affairs department.Till Friday evening, only 4.5% of the total procured wheat had been lifted from mandis across the state. Officials did not release figures for lifting till Saturday evening.Wheat arrivals on Saturday crossed the one-million-tonne mark, with procurement also exceeding one million tonnes for the day. Purchases rose sharply from nearly 75% of total arrivals on Friday to over 84% by the evening of April 18. Almost the entire day’s arrival—99.43%—was procured. Unsold wheat stood at 4,47,882 metric tonnes by Saturday evening.Procurement efficiency has steadily improved over the past few days, rising from 38% on April 15 to 56% on Thursday, nearly 75% on Friday and close to 84% on Saturday. Against arrivals of 10,72,791 MT on Saturday, procurement in a single day was recorded at 10,66,725 MT.Cumulatively, procurement reached 23,83,171 MT against total arrivals of 28,31,053 MT till the evening of April 18. Of the total wheat procured till Friday evening, only 59,555 MT had been lifted from mandis, highlighting logistical challenges that continue to worry farmers and commission agents as arrivals peak.
