Lok Sabha Question No. 1816 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-07-27
Subject: Damage of Foodgrains
Ministry: CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
Asked by: M. Selvaraj

## MINISTRY OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA DEPARTMENT OF FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.1816

TO BE ANSWERED ON 27 TH  JULY, 2022

## DAMAGE OF FOODGRAINS

1816.  SHRI M. SELVARAJ:

Will  the  Minister  of  CONSUMER  AFFAIRS,  FOOD  AND  PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION उपभोᲦा मामले , खा᳒ और सावᭅजिनक िवतरण मंᮢी be pleased to state:

- (a) whether post harvest storage of agricultural produce is a big problem of the farmers in the country;
- (b) if  so,  the  details  thereof  and  the  corrective  steps  taken  by  the Government in this regard during the last three years; and
- (c) the  effective  steps  taken  by  the  Government  to  prevent  damage  to foodgrains due to natural calamities such as floods, droughts and frost?

## A N S W E R

MINISTER OF STATE FOR MINISTRY OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT AND CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION (SADHVI NIRANJAN JYOTI)

- (a)  &  (b):  As  per  Department  of  Agriculture  &  Farmers  Welfare,  a  study conducted by NABARD Consultancy Services (NABCONS) in 2015 on 'All India Cold-chain Infrastructure Capacity (AICIC-2015)' assessed the required capacity of cold storages at that time as 351.00 lakh MT against the existing capacity of 318.23 lakh MT in 2014.

As  per  available  information  with  Department  of  Agriculture  & Farmers  Welfare,  there  are  8361  cold  storages  in  the  country  with  the capacity  of  381.10  lakh  MT  as  on  date.  The  State-wise  details  are  at Annexure-I.

Further, Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare is implementing Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH) for holistic development of horticulture sector including setting up of cold storages for perishable horticulture produce.

The component is demand/entrepreneur driven for which Government  assistance  in  the  form  of  credit  linked  and  back  ended subsidy is available at the rate of 35% of the project cost in general areas and at the rate  of  50% of  the  project  cost  in  hilly  and  scheduled  areas through respective State Horticulture Mission(s) (SHMs).

Food  Corporation  of  India  (FCI)  mainly  stores  Wheat  &  Rice  after procurement  for  Public Distribution  System  (PDS)  operation  and  to maintain  buffer  stock.  FCI  continuously  assesses  and  monitors  the storage  capacity  and  based  on  the  storage  gap  assessment,  storage capacities are created/hired through the following schemes: -

1. Private Entrepreneurs Guarantee (PEG) Scheme
2. 2.
3. Central Sector Scheme (CSS)
3. Construction of Silo's under PPP mode
4. Hiring of godown from Central Warehousing Corporation (CWC)/ State Warehousing Corporations (SWCs)/State Agencies
6. 5.
7. Hiring of godown through Private Warehousing Scheme (PWS)

Following  godowns/silos  capacities  have  been  constructed  by  FCI  in last 3 years and current year:

1. 12 silos have been developed with capacity of 6.00 LMT in last three years and current year, under PPP mode.
2. 43 Godowns have been created with capacity of 3.89 LMT in last three years and current year under Private Entrepreneur Guarantee Scheme.
3. 9 Godowns have been created with capacity of 0.60 LMT in last three years and current year under Central Sector Scheme.
4. 4.
5. In  addition,  Godowns  are  also  hired  from  CWC/SWC  and  under  PWS Schemes on need basis.
6. (c):   The steps taken by the FCI to prevent damage of foodgrains due to
7. natural calamities and others are at Annexure-II.

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## ANNEXURE REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) & (b) OF  THE  UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.1816 FOR ANSWER ON 27.07.2022 IN THE LOK SABHA.

## State wise distribution of Cold Storages as on 18.07.2022 in the Country

| S. No.   | Name of the State             | Total   | Total         |
|----------|-------------------------------|---------|---------------|
|          |                               | No.     | Capacity (MT) |
| 1        | Andaman &Nicobar Islands (UT) | 4       | 2210          |
| 2        | Andhra Pradesh &Telangana     | 442     | 1703321       |
| 3        | Arunachal Pradesh             | 2       | 6000          |
| 4        | Assam                         | 41      | 197096        |
| 5        | Bihar                         | 312     | 1475667       |
| 6        | Chandigarh (UT)               | 7       | 12462         |
| 7        | Chhattisgarh                  | 99      | 487263        |
| 8        | Delhi                         | 97      | 129857        |
| 9        | Goa                           | 29      | 7705          |
| 10       | Gujarat                       | 985     | 3869543       |
| 11       | Haryana                       | 370     | 846588        |
| 12       | Himachal Pradesh              | 81      | 167312        |
| 13       | Jammu &Kashmir                | 72      | 263853        |
| 14       | Jharkhand                     | 58      | 236680        |
| 15       | Karnataka                     | 229     | 694991        |
| 16       | Kerala                        | 201     | 96405         |
| 17       | Lakshadweep (UT)              | 1       | 15            |
| 18       | Madhya Pradesh                | 309     | 1331532       |
| 19       | Maharashtra                   | 627     | 1043182       |
| 20       | Manipur                       | 2       | 4500          |
| 21       | Meghalaya                     | 4       | 8200          |
| 22       | Mizoram                       | 3       | 4071          |
| 23       | Nagaland                      | 5       | 8150          |
| 24       | Orissa                        | 181     | 576688        |
| 25       | Pondicherry (UT)              | 3       | 85            |
| 26       | Punjab                        | 726     | 2451501       |
| 27       | Rajasthan                     | 187     | 631569        |
| 28       | Sikkim                        | 2       | 2100          |
| 29       | Tamil Nadu                    | 187     | 395940        |
| 30       | Telangana                     | 74      | 411518        |
| 31       | Tripura                       | 17      | 51140         |
| 32       | Uttar Pradesh                 | 2429    | 14836735      |
| 33       | Uttrakhand                    | 60      | 206621        |
| 34       | West Bengal                   | 515     | 5948316       |
|          | Total                         | 8361    | 38108816      |

(Source: Directorate of Marketing and Inspection (DMI) upto 2009, National Horticulture Board (NHB), National Horticulture Mission (NHM), Horticulture Mission for North East & Himalayan States (HMNEH)) and  MoFPI

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## ANNEXURE  REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  PART  (c)  OF  THE  UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.1816 FOR ANSWER ON 27.07.2022 IN THE LOK SABHA.

## Steps taken by FCI to prevent damage of foodgrains due to natural calamities and others:

- (i) All godowns are constructed as per specifications with elevated plinth and foodgrains are stored in scientifically built warehouses.
- (ii) Foodgrains are stored by adopting proper scientific code of storage practices.
- (iii) Adequate dunnage materials such as wooden crates, bamboo  mats,  polythene  sheets  are used to check migration of moisture from the floor to the foodgrains.
- (iv) Regular  periodic  inspections  of  the  stocks/godowns  are  undertaken  by  qualified  and trained staff. The health of the foodgrains is monitored at regular intervals by a system of checks and super checks at different levels.
- (v) The principle of 'First in First Out' (FIFO) is followed so as to avoid longer storage of foodgrains in godowns.
- (vi) Only  covered  rail  wagons  are  used  for  movement  of  foodgrains  so  as  to  avoid  damage during transit.
- (vii) Damage  Monitoring  Cells  have  been  set  up  at  District,  Regional  and  Zonal  levels  to regularly monitor quality of stocks and reduce damages. In case any negligence is reported suitable action is taken against officers / officials found responsible.
- (viii) Identify & repair all the leakage point in the roof is done periodically.
- (ix) Cleaning of drainages in the godown premises ensured.
- (x) Ensure no seepage inside the godowns.
- (xi) No clogging up of water in the premises.
- (xii) Fumigation  covers,  nylon  ropes,  nets  and  insecticides  for  control  of  stored  grain  insect pests are provided in all the godowns.
- (xiii) Prophylactic (spraying of insecticides) and curative treatments (fumigation) are carried out regularly and timely in godowns for the control of stored grain insect pests.
- (xiv) Effective rat control measures are taken.

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