The Hindu Business Line : Kharif rice output to top 84 m tonnes: Pawar

New Delhi, Sept 12 The Union Food and Agriculture Minister, Mr Sharad Pawar, on Friday, expressed confidence that the country’s rice production during the current kharif season “will exceed 84 million tonnes (mt)”.

This is over and above the all-time-high kharif output of 82.81 mt achieved in 2007. This year, 368.78 lakh hectares (lh) have been brought under paddy so far against 350.32 lh during the corresponding period last year.

Strategic reserve

Inaugurating the ‘Warehousing 2008’ Conference, organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), Food Corporation of India (FCI) and Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC) here, the Minister said the Centre plans to create a two mt “strategic reserve” of rice from the current crop, to be marketed from next month.

The two mt reserve will be on top of the normal buffer stock of rice in the Central pool maintained by FCI.

“We have already built an emergency reserve comprising three mt of wheat from this year’s record harvest,” he said, while adding that these measures were important in the context of the global market, “which will remain tight in 2008-09 despite an anticipated increase of 2.8 per cent in the world cereal output”.

Maize Exports Ban

Speaking separately to presspersons, Mr Pawar said the Centre was “not interested” in persisting with the ban on maize exports, currently in place till October 15.

“We have to look at farmers’ interests. We have to protect them,” he stated even while not committing himself not to extend the ban once it lapses.

On the other hand, the Minister was clear that the current subsidy given on export of sugar would not be extended beyond the 2007-08 season which ends on September 30.

Mills in Maharashtra and other coastal States are being paid a freight re-imbursement of Rs 1,350 a tonne on exports, with this being Rs 1,450 for factories located in the hinterland.

Increased Coverage

Meanwhile, the Agriculture Ministry’s latest data show increased coverage under rice, soybean and castor during the current kharif season over the corresponding period of last year.

However, there has been a reduction in acreages for other oilseeds (groundnut, sesamum, sunflower and nigerseed), all coarse cereals, pulses, cotton, sugarcane and jute.

Soyabean acreage is seen at a record 95.63 lh against 87.28 lh last year.

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