The government has procured 24.66 million tonne of wheat across the country so far, this marketing year started April. The procurement is 18.3% higher than in the year-ago period, as production in 2016-17 (Jul-Jun) is seen at a record high. Procurement by the government was the highest in Punjab at 10.92 million tonne, up 10.4% from a year ago. Haryana was the second, at 7.06 million tonne, up 9.2% on year. In Uttar Pradesh, where the state government expects to procure a whopping 8 million tonne of wheat this year, 904,704 tonne has already been procured. The purchase is 152.8% higher on year. In Madhya Pradesh, another major producer, the government has bought 5.06 million tonne of the grain so far, up 39.1% from the year-ago period. In Indore, the grain was sold up 10-20 rupees from Saturday. Overall, the central government has set a target to procure 33.0 million tonne of wheat in the current marketing season, up from 22.9 million tonne on year.