Wheat piles up in Sirsa mandis, arhtiyas protest delayed lifting

With wheat arrivals peaking across Sirsa district, the slow pace of procurement has led to piling grain in mandis and frustration among commission agents. On Tuesday, arhtiyas at the Sirsa grain market staged a protest at the mandi gates, prompting an urgent meeting with local officials.

By April 21, 54.93 lakh quintals of wheat had arrived in Sirsa’s mandis, but only 16.43 lakh quintals had been lifted. In Sirsa city alone, 11.06 lakh quintals arrived, while lifting stood at just 4 lakh quintals. Daily arrivals are over 8.26 lakh quintals, leaving little space for fresh stock. As of now, over 4.38 lakh quintals lie unsold.

Traders say the delay is affecting both them and farmers — storage is running out, and payments are pending until crops are lifted. “We protested because wheat was not being lifted on time,” said Prem Bajaj, president of the Arhtiya Association.

Following the protest, SDM Rajendra Kumar chaired a meeting with officials from Haryana State Warehousing Corporation (HWC), DFSC, HAFED, mandi officials, and transport contractors. The contractor assured that 50 trucks for wheat and 10 for mustard would be deployed daily from the next day. However, Bajaj said, “We had demanded 80 trucks, but the contractor cited shortages due to loading for special trains.”

Other mandis also reported similar issues. In Dabwali, 12.43 lakh quintals arrived and only 3.46 lakh lifted. Kalanwali saw 13.09 lakh quintals with 3.64 lakh lifted. Ellenabad had 4.61 lakh quintals with just 2.15 lakh lifted.

Market committee Sirsa secretary Virender Mehta said, “The contractor has agreed to send vehicles, and lifting will now speed up.”

Haryana Tribune