Soybean Procurement Deadline Extended in Key Indian States

The Indian government has extended soybean procurement deadlines in Maharashtra and Rajasthan due to state requests. The deadline is now January 31 for Maharashtra and February 4 for Rajasthan. Additional procurement of 25,000 tonnes has been approved for Telangana. Total national procurement has reached 13.68 lakh tonnes.

The Indian government has extended the deadline for soybean procurement in Maharashtra to January 31 and in Rajasthan to February 4, responding to appeals from state governments. Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced this decision on Monday.

Originally set for January 12 in Maharashtra and January 15 in Rajasthan, the procurement deadlines were adjusted to aid these states further. 'Procurement is proceeding,' Chouhan assured reporters, 'and the deadlines were extended on the requests of the state governments.'

Additionally, the government has sanctioned an extra procurement of 25,000 tonnes from Telangana, which had already met its initial target of 59,508 tonnes. Nationally, soybean procurement has reached a total of 13.68 lakh tonnes. The procurement, under the Price Support Scheme (PSS), sees the government purchasing soybean at a Minimum Support Price (MSP) of Rs 4,892 per quintal. Chouhan also mentioned that he would hold weekly review meetings every Monday at Krishi Bhavan to assess crop conditions, procurement progress, price trends, and weather conditions.