Punjab Launches Paddy Procurement with 180-Lakh-Tonne Target, Rs 42,787-Crore Credit Line

Punjab's Food and Civil Supplies Minister Lal Chand Kataruchak on Thursday formally launched the state government's paddy procurement for the 2026-27 season at the Batala grain market in Gurdaspur district, kicking off one of the most consequential agricultural operations in the state. The government has set a procurement target of 180 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) for the season.

Inauguration at Batala grain market

Kataruchak initiated the procurement by purchasing the produce brought by Gurpreet Singh of Dulat village and Prabhjot Kaur, marking the start of arrivals at the mandis. He said the government led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann has run procurement smoothly over the past nine seasons and would ensure a hassle-free purchase of every grain this season as well. The minister met commission agents and farmers on the occasion and assured them they would face no difficulty in the mandis.

The minister appealed to farmers to bring properly dried paddy to the mandis so that procurement proceeds without delays. The state's procurement agencies will buy the farmers' crop at the minimum support price of Rs 2,461 per quintal.

Rs 42,787-crore credit line for timely payments

Ahead of the season, the Centre has approved a Cash Credit Limit (CCL) of Rs 42,786.68 crore for October, which the minister described as major relief for the state. The credit line is meant to ensure immediate and smooth payment to farmers for the paddy procured by government agencies.

The Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Department has so far notified 1,887 marking yards for procurement operations, with more yards to be made operational as arrivals pick up. The department has also received five lakh gunny bags for packing the paddy brought to the mandis.

Kataruchak said directions have been issued to District Food Supply Controllers to ensure that no paddy from outside Punjab is sold in the state's mandis. Adequate arrangements have also been made for clean drinking water and medical supplies for the labour force engaged in unloading and packing work.

Storage pressure looms over the season

The procurement begins under the shadow of a severe storage crunch. According to industry and departmental sources, godowns across Punjab are already holding around 180 lakh tonnes of rice from the previous three procurement seasons, while covered and plinth (CAP) storage facilities with a capacity of 60 lakh tonnes are also full.

The rice industry has warned that the pace of lifting foodgrain from the state needs to nearly double to about 20 lakh tonnes per month to prevent gridlock, and has demanded that at least 50 lakh tonnes of additional storage space be cleared by December 31. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has already raised the issue of grain stock evacuation with the Union Government.

Paddy has been cultivated across 32.7 lakh hectares in the state this year, and the agriculture department expects the total yield to surpass 210 lakh tonnes — a harvest that will test both the procurement machinery and the state's storage capacity in the weeks ahead.