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Government Partially Restores Wheat Allocation Under PMGKAY
Context:
The Centre will partially restore wheat distribution for beneficiaries of the Pradhan Mantri Gareeb Kalyan Ann Yojana (PMGKAY) after reducing it two years ago.
More on News:
- This change comes as a response to lower crop yields, which had led to an increased focus on rice.
- As confirmed by the Food Secretary, an additional 3.5 million tonnes of wheat will be allocated under PMGKAY starting next month.
Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana (PMGKAY) program, one of the largest social welfare initiatives globally, provides over 800 million people with five kilograms of free food grains each month.
Key Highlights:
Current Wheat and Rice Allocation:
- Wheat allocation was previously reduced from 18.2 million tonnes to 7.1 million tonnes in May 2022 due to low domestic production.
- The current allocation will continue until March 2025 but remains 1-2 million tonnes lower than normal levels.
- The government cited ample wheat availability, with a bumper production of 112.9 million tonnes last year.
- The government is launching a Rs 1,000 crore credit guarantee scheme to assist banks in providing loans against electronic Negotiable Warehouse Receipts (eNwR).
- Aims to increase the quantum of loans from approximately Rs 4,000 crore to over Rs 100,000 crore over the next decade.
Agriculture Initiatives:
- The government is considering lifting the ban on non-basmati rice exports.
- Food Corporation of India (FCI) has saved Rs 112 crore by optimising food grain transport.
- FCI plans to purchase a record 9 million tonnes of millets in kharif 2024-25.
- Ethanol blending capacity is set to increase from 16.23 billion litres to 17 billion litres.
NCEL Achievements and the Launch of White Revolution 2.0:
- The National Cooperative Exports Limited has achieved revenues of nearly Rs 4,000 crore through agricultural exports, primarily from rice, onion, sugar, and jeera.
- In line with this initiative, Cooperative Minister is set to launch the “White Revolution 2.0” in New Delhi.
- This program aims to boost milk procurement from dairy cooperative societies by 50%, increasing current levels of 66 million litres.
NCEL, established under the newly formed Ministry of Cooperatives, aims to leverage a network of over 800,000 cooperatives to enhance agricultural exports.
