Wastage of food grains due to inadequate storage conditions
29 Sep, 2012As per information made available in response to an application filed under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, the quantum of grains which has rotted at the various storage facilities of the Food Corporation of India (FCI) since 2008 is nearly 36,000 tonnes. Punjab (19,290 tonnes); West Bengal (4,545 tonnes), and Gujarat (4,290 tonnes) lead the race amongst the states in terms of the quantum of grain which has gone bad. The damage has been attributed to reasons such as pest attack, leakages, poor quality stocks, spillages during transportation, floods, human negligence and exposure to rain etc. Specific data regarding the loss attributable to inadequate storage space was not available.
In June 2012, it was reported in the Parliament by the Minister of State for Food and Public Distribution that more than 6.6 million tonnes of wheat, which was meant for sale through the fair-price shops, was lying in the open.
This calls for a systematic effort to build storage space for godowns if such wastage of food grains is to be avoided.