India’s rice purchase for the Central Pool stock, done through the Food Corporation of India, during the October 2025-January 2026 period, was 42.95 million tonnes (mt), up by 3.7 per cent from 41.41 mt a year ago.
Experts believe the purchase in the first four months of the procurment season is good to face unforeseen eventuality amid concerns over likely emergence of El Nino during the monsoon season. Drought-bearing El Nino leads to drought or prolonged dry periods in India.
The government is yet to devise a permanent offtake policy to dispose of the surplus as the purchases have been exceeding the annual requirement for the public distribution system continuously. The ad hoc arrangement of diverting some quantity for ethanol has affected the sugarcane sector as lower ethanol purchase has led to reappearance of cane arrears for the farmers this year, experts said.
N. India purchases over
The all-India rice purchase target has been fixed at 46.35 mt in 2025-26, from the Kharif-grown crop. Total procurement in 2024-25 from both kharif and Rrabi crops was 54.52 mt.
Procurement in Punjab, Haryana and other northern States got completed in December, while in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Karnataka it will continue until the end of February. The purchase season ended in Chhattisgarh and Gujarat on January 31. It will continue until February 15 in Telangana, and till March 31 in Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra, and till April 30 in West Bengal.
Rice marketing season begins from October and the procurement period varies from State to State, depending on the cropping pattern followed in each State. Due to early arrival of the paddy this year, the Centre allowed procuring agencies in Punjab and Haryana to begin purchase from mid-September and in Tamil Nadu from September 1.
Other States
The FCI buy increased by 112 per cent to 1.1 mt from 0.52 mt a year ago in Tamil Nadu. This is attributed to bumper production as well as the State government’s push due to the assembly poll scheduled this year. Telangana’s purchase, which was 27.3 per cent higher until December 31, has now reported 0.6 per cent rise to 3.6 mt from 3.57 mt as the year-ago number showed an improvement. This year’s purchase remained at the same level as the month before. Andhra Pradesh has reported a 99.1 per cent rise to 2.74 mt from 1.38 mt until January 31.
In West Bengal, the Centre has been able to buy 1.30 mt rice this year against 1.3 mt a year ago.
Rice procurement in the largest-producing State (in the kharif season), Uttar Pradesh, has improved after falling in the first two months. It continued in January, too. The purchase in UP has now reached 3.9 mt, which is 8.2 per cent up from 3.6 mt a year ago. Madhya Pradesh also reported a 17.1 per cent increase in purchase at 3.41 mt from 2.92 mt and Uttarakhand a 11.3 per cent rise in purchase at 0.50 mt from 0.45 mt.
Punjab slips
On the other hand, Punjab, which has been the top rice contributor to the Central Pool stock, purchased 10/49 mt, which is 9.7 per cent lower than 11.61 mlt a year ago, and Haryana got almost similar 3.6 mt as last year, official data show.
Chhattisgarh has reported the rice purchase was 4.3 per cent higher at 7.3 mt from 7 mt after procurement began from November 1 and ended on January 31. Odisha reported 5.1 per cent lower purchase at 2.8 mt against 2.95 mt and Maharashtra 6.3 per cent down at 0.51 lt from 0.55 lt. Bihar was 19 per cent below last year at 1.33 mt from 1.64 mt.
The Agriculture Ministry has earlier said that rice production in the 2025-26 Kharif season is estimated to be a record 124.50 mt, up by 1.4 per cent from 122.77 mt a year ago. According to the latest data as of January 1, the Food Corporation of India (FCI) had 30.94 mt of rice in 2026 (6 per cent up from a year ago), 55.22 mt of paddy (16 per cent up) and 27.46 mt of wheat (49 per cent up).
Higher than buffer
The current stock of rice (including in the form of paddy) is nine times more than the buffer norm (as on January 1) of 7.61 mt and that of wheat is nearly double from 13.8 mt.
The government already allocated 0.52 mt of rice for making ethanol and selling it at a reduced rate of Rs 23,200 per tonne since November 1, against the estimated economic cost of Rs 41,733.40/tonne.
Published on February 6, 2026
