Friday May 9, 02:26 PM
Indian government procures 18.01 mln tonnes wheat till May 8
MUMBAI (Thomson Financial) - India, the world's second-largest consumer of wheat, said government agencies bought 18.01 million tonnes of the grain between April 14 and May 8, compared with 9.06 million tonnes the same time last year.
The ministry of consumer affairs, food and public distribution, said that government agencies bought 9.39 million tonnes from the northern Indian state of Punjab and 5.04 million tonnes from neighbouring Haryana.
Earlier, agriculture minister Sharad Pawar said he was confident of buying 16 million to 17 million tonnes of wheat locally this year as India raised its wheat output estimates by 1.3 percent to 76.78 million tonnes.
India imported 1.8 million tonnes of wheat last year, after procurement fell to 11.1 million tonnes against a targeted 15 million.
Indian farmers sow the grain, which is mainly grown in the northern and central part of the country, between October and November (Frankfurt: A0S9N7 - news) , and harvest by the start of February, with April-May the most active period of government buying.
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