Wheat arrivals rise in Panipat, Sonepat; lifting remains slow

The arrival of wheat crop in the grain markets of Panipat and Sonepat districts is gradually gaining momentum, but the lifting of the procured wheat continues to lag behind. Officials attribute the slowdown to the recent spell of untimely rain, which disrupted procurement operations for the past two days.

As per official data, only 11.08 per cent of the procured wheat has been lifted in Panipat so far.

Devender Kuhar, Subject Matter Specialist from the Agriculture Department, stated that wheat harvesting had commenced and was expected to pick up pace in the coming days. “In Sonepat, wheat is sown across around 3.5 lakh acres, while in Panipat, it covers about 2 lakh acres. The wheat yield is better compared to previous years due to favourable weather conditions over the last 15–20 days, which enhanced the crop quality,” he said.

Kuhar added that although harvesting had begun, only 7–10 per cent of the crop was harvested in Panipat and Sonepat so far. “As harvesting gathers speed, the arrival in grain markets will increase accordingly,” he said.

In Panipat, 8,03,543 quintals of wheat have arrived at the grain markets so far. Of this, 6,72,148 quintals have been procured and only 79,331 quintals—about 11.08 per cent—have been lifted.

In Sonepat, procurement has reached 69,461 metric tonnes across 24 grain markets and purchase centres until Friday evening.

Dharambir Singh Malik, state vice-president of the Haryana Arhtiyas Association, said that the peak arrival period was yet to begin. “Farmers have started bringing their crops and procurement is underway, but lifting has not properly started yet,” he said.

Baljeet Singh, President of the Samalkha grain market, said that the rain over the past two days had disrupted wheat arrival. “About a lakh bags of wheat have been procured so far, but only 20,000 bags have been lifted. Since many wheat bags are lying in the open and have become wet, they will be lifted only after they dry,” he added.

Sanjay Verma, Chairman of the Sonepat grain market, confirmed that arrivals had now picked up pace, and procurement was running smoothly. “The crop quality is better than last year, but the lifting is still slow,” he said.

Panipat Deputy Commissioner (DC) Virender Kumar Dahiya claimed that the procurement process was going smoothly in all grain markets. He instructed officials to expedite the lifting of the procured wheat.

Sonepat DC Dr Manoj Kumar Yadav urged farmers to ensure that their crop was properly dried before bringing it to the markets to facilitate seamless procurement. He also directed officials to speed up the lifting process and to ensure adequate amenities like electricity, potable water, sanitation and toilets in the grain markets.

Haryana Tribune