Govt wheat procurement picks up about 72,955 tonnes bought.

FCI has procured 72,955 tonnes of wheat from farmers in Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and Rajasthan. Procurement is highest in Madhya Pradesh at about 65,112 tonnes. Wheat purchase at Bhopal and Narmadapuram division of Madhya Pradesh started on March21. FCI aims to buy 8.5 million tonnes of wheat in Madhya Pradesh in 2017-18(Apr-Mar), compared with 4.0 million tonnes bought a year ago. In Gujarat, about 7,837 tonnes of wheat has been purchased from 5 procurement centres so far. Govt procurement in other states is likely to begin from April1. Centre has set a target of procuring 33 million tonnes of the food grain in 2017-18, up from 22.9 million tonnes purchased in the previous season.