- Centre raises Telangana’s Rabi rice procurement target to 4.3 mnt
- Additional procurement to benefit Telangana farmers
The Indian central government has increased Telangana’s rice procurement target by 800,000 t for the 2025-26 Rabi marketing season, raising the target from 3.5 million tonnes (mnt) to 4.3 mnt.
The Ministry of Food and Public Distribution also informed the Telangana government to ensure the implementation of the Vehicle Location Tracking System (VLTS) across the state by 30 September 2026.
The enhanced procurement target follows requests from several quarters, including the Telangana government. Union Coal and Mines Minister G. Kishan Reddy welcomed the decision and thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Food Minister Pralhad Joshi, stating that the additional procurement would benefit Telangana’s farmers.
Under the procurement system, the government purchases rice from farmers through state agencies at the Minimum Support Price (MSP) and adds it to the central pool managed by the Food Corporation of India (FCI). The revised target allows Telangana to supply an additional 800,000 t of rice to the central pool, enabling procurement of a larger quantity of paddy from farmers during the Rabi season. The Centre has also asked the Telangana government to hand over the procured rice to the Food Corporation of India (FCI) at the earliest to facilitate procurement operations.
Outlook
The higher procurement target strengthens market assurance for Telangana’s farmers by enabling a larger quantity of their produce to be procured under the government procurement system. It may also reduce the need for farmers to sell in the open market, where prices can fall below the Minimum Support Price (MSP), thereby supporting smoother procurement during the 2025-26 Rabi marketing season.
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