Punjab procurement agencies halt wheat purchase; procurement staff alleges political pressure, relaxation in specification
Kanwar Inder singh/ royalpatiala.in News/ April 12,2026
The Joint Coordination Committee of State Procurement Agencies, Punjab, has announced its decision to suspend, not to procure any wheat until their demands are met.
The committee has written to the Principal Secretary, Food Supplies Department, Punjab government on April 11,2026 highlighting the problems being faced in the field during procurement. It stated, “The procurement of wheat for the Rabi Season 2026–27 has commenced in the state of Punjab. As you are already aware, due to unseasonal rains and sudden changes in temperature this year, the wheat arriving in the mandis does not meet FAQ (Fair Average Quality) standards. When field staff go to procure this wheat, they face heavy political and administrative pressure to purchase it. In this context, our colleague Major Singh, associated with PUNGRAIN District Patiala, was relieved from procurement duty under political pressure because he refused to procure wheat that did not meet the prescribed government quality standards in the mandi.”
“Therefore, the Coordination Committee of all procurement agencies in Punjab has decided that until the government declares this wheat as URS (Under Relaxed Specifications) and provides relaxation in procurement norms, and until the storage gain of 29.10 (deducted at the time of delivering wheat to FCI) is abolished, all field staff will suspend wheat procurement operations,” said the spokesperson of the joint action committee.
They further added, “As clearly stated in Punjab Government letter No. 01/32/2019/A-1/1814 dated Chandigarh, 22/11/2019, any wheat that does not meet government standards should not be procured. If any staff member procures such wheat, administrative action will be taken against them.”
An officer of a procurement agency, speaking on condition of anonymity, said, “Field staff are being forced to procure the crop while ignoring the prescribed standard norms. We have been instructed not to purchase crops with issues such as ‘luster loss’ and ‘shriveled grain.’ We, the field staff, are seeking relaxation in the specifications.”
“The central team visited Rajpura, Ghanaur, Patiala, Nabha, and Samana today to collect samples. Farmers and procurement agencies are hopeful of receiving some relaxation from the central government. Procurement will resume once the relaxation is granted,” said another officer associated with procurement.
Vinay Sharma, President of the PSWC Field Staff Union, Punjab, added, “Both the central and state governments have already issued instructions not to procure crops that do not meet the specifications. Even under these instructions, if any field official procures crops with luster loss, they will be held responsible.”
He further said, “We are expecting relaxation in the specifications from the central government within a day or two. After that, procurement will begin again under the revised norms.”
