Labour scarcity blamed for sluggish lifting of wheat from mandis

With 60 per cent of the bought 7.1 million tonnes of wheat nonetheless mendacity in Punjab’s mandis, labour scarcity in grain markets in addition to on the unloading factors at storage stations has been cited as the foremost purpose for the sluggish transport out of the grain from the market.
Till Friday, solely 2.8 million tonnes of wheat may very well be transported out of the mandis whereas heavy arrival of the crop was continued and 4.3 million tonnes bought wheat was nonetheless mendacity within the mandis .
During the primary wave final 12 months, as procurement occurred throughout lockdown, labour from different sectors had joined the workforce in mandis to make up for the absence of migrant employees.
“But this 12 months there may be scarcity of labourers in grain markets throughout the state as a result of much less variety of migrants got here to Punjab due to a number of causes and native labourers aren’t accessible to us as a result of there isn’t a lockdown. So many employees
who got here to mandis final 12 months are busy with their respective work this 12 months,” stated Darshan Lal, the president of Khanna Mandi Association, including that in Khanna mandi that had 15,000 labourers throughout the wheat season yearly, this 12 months has solely 10,000-odd.
Labour is required for unloading of farmers’ crops, cleansing, filling, weighing after which loading in vans to take to authorities storage locations.
“Elections in UP and West Bengal, costly fare, fear of lockdown again led several migrants either to stay back in their home towns or returning midway after surge in Covid cases across the country,” stated Lal. He added: “Shortage of workers has slowed down every process which is affecting the lifting process hugely.”
According to Lal, migrants have are available much less numbers as this 12 months they largely depending on travelling by street which is a pricey affair. “During wheat season, even if they are working for Rs 500 daily then their income would be around Rs 7,000 to 10,000. If they have to pay Rs 3,000 to 4,000 on travelling by road then it does not make sense. So many of them preferred to stay in their home state this season,” stated one other labour union member Banwari Lal in Jalandhar’s grain market which can also be jam filled with the wheat crop.
“For last two days I was waiting for unloading of my crop at mandi and when I did not find the place, the arhtiya got is stored his private yard till the time lifting of all the procured wheat does not take place,” stated farmer Jagjit Singh at Nurmahal grain market, including that a number of farmers are returning with the their trolleys filled with grain to their houses to return once more after a few days as a result of there isn’t a level of ready endlessly.

“If the purchased wheat is not lifted from mandis the farmers like me who are coming on their turn to mandis will not find a place. I am also waiting to get a proper place to unload my six trolleys but so far I have failed to find a place,” stated farmer Jang bahadur from Fatehgarh Sahib at Khanna Mandi.
Even the grain which is being transported out of mandis can also be not getting unloaded on the authorities storage factors for 2-3 days at a number of locations. “In Hoshiarpur, the trucks are not being unloaded at storage places and if unloading takes time there then how lifting from mandis can be done quickly as trucks will return after a gap of 2-3 days to mandis,” stated Happy Sandhu, president of Truck Operators Union, including that round 65,000 vans are engaged in transportation of wheat from mandis to authorities godowns however resulting from sluggish unloading lifting can also be very sluggish.
“Labour shortage is there in majority mandis across the state,” he stated.
Gurmukh Singh Malhi, who takes labour and transport tenders in Punjab, stated that they’re dealing with round 40 per cent scarcity of labour due to which lifting from mandis is sluggish.
According to authorities procurement businesses, almost 40 per cent of the full bought wheat may very well be transported from mandis every day on a median. Director, Department of Food and Civil Supplies Punjab, Ravi Bhagat admitted that there’s a labour scarcity within the mandis this 12 months.