FCI sells 2.87 lac tons wheat in 19th round of e-auction

FCI sells 2.87 lac tons wheat in 19th round of e-auction

State-owned Food Corporation of India (FCI) sold 2.87 lakh tonne of wheat from the buffer stock to bulk consumers in the 19th round of e-auction. FCI has been selling wheat and rice from the Central pool to bulk buyers like flour millers and small traders under the Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS) since June 28 through a weekly e-auction in order to control the retail prices of these key commodities.

The quantity of wheat sold in the 19th e-auction held on November 1 remained slightly higher as the FCI increased the bid quantity to Rs 200 tonne under the OMSS. "As a result, 2.87 lakh tonne wheat has been sold to 2,389 bidders in the e-auction…," the food ministry said in a statement.

The weighted average selling price was Rs 2,291.15 per quintal for fair and average quality wheat, as against the reserve price of Rs 2,150 per quintal. The weighted average selling price of under relaxed specification wheat was Rs 2,311.62 per quintal as against the reserve price of Rs 2,125 per quintal.

The sale of wheat under OMSS will continue till March 31, 2024 and about 101.5 lakh tonne of wheat will be offloaded till then. The traders are kept out from the ambit of wheat sale under OMSS and till October 3, about 1,721 random checks were made across the country to curb hoarding of stocks.