Procurement of Wheat in Jammu Kashmir during 2022 has been recorded at 24.000 Tons. This is a positive sign for farmers especially of Jammu region as the increase is more than double of what was reported in the past few years. Jammu and Kashmir data is updated yearly from Mar 2009 to 2022, with 4 observations. The data reached an all-time high of 24.000 Ton in 2022 and a record low of 1.000 Ton in 2010. However, the trend in growth in Wheat production in Jammu Kashmir will soon make the way for Union Territory to be self-sufficient.
Wheat is a staple food in the Jammu Plain, which borders the province of Punjab, but could not register a notable mark. Wheat is a crop that can be grown in tropical, subtropical, and temperate climates and a large track of Jammu Province is suitable for this crop. The efforts needed to be further strengthened to increase cultivable area under wheat production by the Agriculture Department taking a queue from the model of Punjab and Haryana.
So far its pricing is concerned, because of the Minimum Support Price (MSP) offered for wheat in the major states contributing to the Central pool, including Punjab, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and other states, the Union Government is able to keep the country's staple grain's spiralling cost under control for the second time in two years. Wheat is only a profitable crop because MSP is guaranteed for it, and we have large swaths of wheat-sown fields, ensuring full and even overflowing government granaries based on weather-dependent yield. Given this, it is not incorrect to say that paying MSP to cultivators is an investment in basic food security as well as a guaranteed price return for the hardworking farmers. This ability to weather a crisis lends credence to the farmers' 2020-21 protest, which demanded guaranteed MSP for food crops and the repeal of the ‘black' farm laws, which the government was eventually forced to withdraw.
Thus, with sufficient buffer stock on hand, the Centre was able to offload 50 lakh tonnes of wheat in the market through the Open Market Sale Scheme within one month — 30 lakh tonnes on January 25, and 20 lakh tonnes on February 21 — to help cool off soaring retail prices of wheat and its flour and provide relief to the common consumer. The scheme ensures a broad reach by distributing wheat sales proportionally among public and private channels such as the FCI, state governments (for PDS), flour mills, traders and bulk buyers, and manufacturers of wheat products.
Despite the Ukraine-Russia conflict, India was one of the few countries to avoid a food crisis last year, thanks to millions of tonnes of wheat purchased at MSP. Unlike many other countries, India avoided price increases due to disruptions in the global food supply chain and the fact that Russia and Ukraine are Europe's bread basket. It banned wheat exports in May to keep its price stable and ensured the traditional ‘Roti' on every household. Another step in the right direction is the development of climate-smart wheat varieties that can withstand high temperatures.
