Less rainfall: India to lose 4mt foodgrains

New Delhi: Foodgrains production in the just-concluded fiscal (2014-15) is likely to be 257 million tonnes against the target of 261 million tonnes, resulting in a shortfall of four million tonnes, according to the agriculture ministry's second advanced estimates. The country's foodgrains production was 266 million tonnes in fiscal 2013-14.The Indian agriculture season is from July 1 to June 30 in the next year. "Though rainfall deficit was 12 per cent in the monsoon period last year (June-Sept 2014), overall production decline was not much, as decrease in the sowing area was only two percent," according to Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh.

To provide relief to thousands of farmers affected by recent unseasonal rains in some state across the country, the central government is considering more norms for the National Disaster Response Fund (NDRF). "We are considering to increase norms for the NDRF to compensate farmers affected by unseasonal rains," Singh said. Earlier, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said that the contraction in foodgains production in 2014-15 may turn out to be less than earlier anticipated. "The adverse impact of unseasonal rains and hailstorms in March is still unfolding. Initial estimates indicate that 17 per cent of the sown area under the rabi crop may have been affected though the precise extent of the damage remains to be determined," the central bank said in its first bi-monthly monetary policy statement.

Singh urged state governments to first compensate the affected farmers from their respective State Disaster Response Fund (SDRF). "State governments are authorised to notify disaster and expenditure for relief can be met from their response fund (SDRF) up to 10 percent of it (fund)," Singh said. The Minister also advised the concerned states to send a report on the area affected by the unseasonal rain to his ministry for assessment. Unseasonal rains and hailstorms have affected Bihar, Gujarat Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Maharashtra, MP, Punjab, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh.Kharif season starts in June with sowing when monsoon begins and its crop is harvested in November, while the rabi season begins with sowing in November and the crop, especially wheat, is harvested in April-May.

The ministry of consumer affairs, food and public distribution decided to relax quality norms for wheat procurement. "We have asked Haryana, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh governments to test samples of wheat jointly with FCI (Food Corporation of India) on arrival to relaxing quality norms for procurement," the ministry said in a statement. Quality norms for wheat procurement have been relaxed up to 10 percent in Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh for the rabi season, as the shrunk and broken grain had lost shine. As per Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006 relaxation in norms is allowed in the case of broken and shrunk grains and if grains lost shine.