Ludhiana East achieves highest wheat procurement and lifting in Punjab.
Ludhiana: Govt agencies in this district have completed their wheat procurement and almost finished lifting the crop from grain markets ahead of the May 31 deadline, with private traders emerging as top buyers alongside state-run entities, official data shows.
A May 20 report from the food, civil supplies, and consumer affairs department suggests that Ludhiana East achieved 100% procurement and lifting, amounting to 3.19 lakh metric tonnes, while Ludhiana West followed closely with 3.28 lakh MT procurement and 99.9% lifting. District food and supply controller (DFSC) for Ludhiana East, Shefali Chopra, said govt agencies had completed procurement and lifting in the East circle by May 16.
She credited "ground-level coordination" for the efficient operation and noted that Ludhiana East had topped the state's performance rankings this season — just as it did last year when it won the best procurement award for the fiscal 2023-24.
Statewide, Ludhiana East and SAS Nagar (Mohali) were the only districts to achieve 100% lifting by govt agencies as of May 20. In contrast, Amritsar recorded the lowest rate at 83.99%, highlighting uneven lifting progress across Punjab.
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Private traders played a significant role in Ludhiana's overall wheat procurement this year. A district-level report dated May 16 shows that private players procured 1.68 LMT wheat, placing them among the top three procurement entities — behind Pungrain (1.81 LMT) and Markfed (1.79 LMT), and well ahead of FCI (60,120 MT), the lowest among govt agencies.
Manjot Singh, an Arhitya (commission agent) at the Khanna grain market, said the wheat season posed fewer logistical challenges than the paddy season due to the smaller volume of grain. "Procurement was done almost 20 days ago," he said, adding that local flour mill owners, acting as private traders, had bought in large volumes expecting future price increases. The figures come amid growing attention on food security, market volatility, and the shifting role of private enterprise in India's agricultural supply chain.
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