Around 9 lakh quintals of foodgrains, enough to feed Madhya Pradesh’s population for nearly a month, have been ruined in government warehouses. Most of the food is now unfit for animal feed.
India ranks 105th on the Global Hunger Index, lower than Ethiopia, and Madhya Pradesh struggles with severe malnutrition, where over 26% of children under five are underweight – the highest rate in the country.
The state’s civil supplies corporation, responsible for distributing food grains through the public distribution system, had to sell rotten foodgrains through tenders to recover costs. Between March and November 2024, the corporation soldaround 8.9 lakh quintals, mainly wheat, excluding small amounts of spoiled rice. The government incurred a loss of approximately ₹200 crore due to the sale of these damaged grains.
Govind Singh Rajput, the state’s Minister for Food and Civil Supplies, commented on the issue, stating, “I’ve instructed officials that this should never happen again. We’re planning to introduce an insurance policy to cover such losses, and regular inspections will be carried out.”
The rotten foodgrains were categorised into cattle feed, poultry feed, industrial use, and manure. Some grains were too damaged, even for animals. They were procured from farmers and stored in government-run warehouses, but transportation delays and poor storage practices led to spoilage.
These grains, dating back to 2018-2019, had started to rot. The government had to clear them out, leading to a significant loss. While some losses will be recovered from the state warehousing and logistics corporation, much of the cost remains unrecouped.
This massive food wastage harms the people of Madhya Pradesh, given the state’s malnutrition issues. The wheat allotment for January 2025 is expected to be around 11 lakh quintals, highlighting the loss scale.
Local officials confirmed that if the warehouses are government-owned, employees are responsible for any losses. If the warehouse is part of a joint venture, recovery is from the private partners.
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