When there is a bumper crop coming

Indian farmers have worked extra hard and have produced much more than ever anticipated, and this has resulted in big problems in storage and procurement of the food grains.The granaries are they already overflowing and now the bumper crop is due in June. We have to make space for that also now.Due to better seeds of high yielding variety, due to correct usage of fertilisers, and good weather, farmers have produced biggest harvest ever.Farmers should become rich because the cost of food has risen high. But the middlemen take the profit.Government compels them to sell at minimum support price.And farmer has difficulty in recovering the input costs.Now, the difficult problem is that of storage of the grains procured by minimum support price.Since all farmers went for productions of wheat and rice, there is over production.Moreover,production and distribution is not streamlined, so that storage stage can be avoided.Each district should have its own storehouse, but they do not, they give it to the state's FCI granaries. Export was not thought about by planners, they had never planned such a big harvest.There is fear of spoilage due to open storage. If properly treated, grains can be stored for five years.for example irradiation treatment can get rid of micro organisms.Government has planned for doubling the storage capacity in next five years. But the problem of storage is acute NOW.We can give away the grains free to avoid storage.Reviewing statistics of grains will not help now, if policies can be made immediately to distribute, it will help.FCI procures 100% of grains produced in the states of Punjab and Haryana, but it procures only 40% of produce from UP.Why should there be different policy for different states?States like Assam have started producing grains and have successfully made big harvests.In the state of Rajasthan, there are no sacks available for storing grains.We have to distribute the already full 750 lakh tonnes of food grain to make space for bumper crop which has already been harvested.12million tonne of the bumper harvest is being procured now.There is deficit in management and governance.FCI somehow evades responsibilities and Supreme Court's recommendation to double storehouses year ago was ignored.Making Private Public Partnerships to increase store houses will make an effective use of food resources produced.No time to make policies or plans, it is a bountiful harvest this year and more bumper crops will be coming within a month.It is showering grains--a time of plenty.Lets look for immediate actions to save grains which keep pouring in.