First e-auction of wheat in open market begins; more than 1,100 bidders participate

A quantity of 8.88 lakh metric tonnes of wheat was sold on the first day of the auction in 22 states

February 2, 2023

FCI begins e-auction of wheat for sale in the open market, 8.88 lakh metric tonne sold on first day

On Wednesday the Food Corporation of India (FCI) offered 22 lakh metric tonnes of wheat out of its 25 lakh metric tonnes of stock for sale through the open market in the first e-auction which took place. A quantity of 8.88 lakh metric tonnes of wheat was sold on the first day of the auction in 22 states.

Official sources said that more than 1,100 bidders came forward to participate in the e-auction.

In Rajasthan, bidding would be conducted today, while the further sales of wheat through e-auction will continue throughout the country every Wednesday till the second week of March.

The Centre has reserved 3 lakh metric tonnes of wheat to cooperatives and federations like Kendriya Bhandar, NCCF, and NAFED for sale without e-auction at the concessional rate of Rs.2,350 per quintal for converting wheat to atta.

This would then be offered to the public at an MRP of Rs.29.50 per kg. NCCF has been allowed to lift 50,000 metric tonnes of wheat stock under the above scheme across seven states.

Allotment of 1 lakh metric tonnes of wheat is made to NAFED and a similar quantity is given to Kendriya Bhandar under this scheme to bring down the price of atta across the country.

In order to rein in the rising prices of wheat, the government had last month announced that it would offload 30 lakh metric tonnes of the essential commodity in the open market within two months through multiple channels, which would facilitate faster delivery to consumers.

[With Inputs from IANS]

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