Gandhinagar: A high-level meeting chaired by Agriculture Minister Raghavji Patel was held on September 26 in the state capital to plan the procurement of kharif crops such as groundnut, moong, urad, and soybean at the support price. Considering the bumper production of groundnut in the state this year, the state government, with support from the central government, has developed a special plan for procurement through the central nodal agency at the support price.

Providing details of this plan, the Agriculture Minister stated that under the Pradhan Mantri Annadata Aay Sanrakshan Abhiyan, groundnut, mung bean, urad, and soybean crops in Gujarat will be procured at the support price starting from November 11, 2024, after the Labh Panchmi. More than 160 procurement centers have been identified, taking into account the total area and production of kharif crops in the state. These centers will purchase crops at the support price for 90 days.

Minister Patel urged farmers to sell their kharif crops at the support price, emphasizing that online registration must be completed between October 3 and October 31, 2024, through the e-Samrudhi Portal via VCE at e-Gram Centers. The state government has made adequate arrangements for the procurement of groundnut, mung bean, urad, and soybean from farmers and has undertaken advance planning to ensure smooth operations.

He further mentioned that the Government of India announced the support prices for the 2024–25 season before the sowing of kharif crops. The support prices are as follows: groundnut at Rs. 6,783 per quintal (Rs. 1,356.60 per maund), mung bean at Rs. 8,682 per quintal (Rs. 1,736.40 per maund), an average of Rs. 7,400 per quintal (Rs. 1,480 per maund) for urad, and soybean at Rs. 4,892 per quintal (Rs. 978.40 per maund).

It is worth mentioning that last year, 61,372 beneficiary farmers received over Rs. 671 crores, with more than 1,18,000 tons of produce purchased. This year, the state government has made special arrangements to ensure that an even greater number of farmers can benefit from the procurement at subsidized prices. DeshGujarat