In this context, Rohit Kumar Singh, Secretary, Department of Consumer Affairs, had an internal meeting with these officers who visited key pulses markets and met with market participants.
Apart from the Secretary, Government of India, meeting with the All India Dal Mills Association in Indore on April 15, 2023, the Department dispatched 12 senior officers to various locations in Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu to assess ground reality.
Interactions with market participants on the ground and state officials revealed that, while the number of registrations and stock disclosures on the e-portal is increasing, a significant number of market participants have either not registered or have failed to update their stock positions on a regular basis. Stocks under transaction, such as farmer's stocks lying in mandi for auction, stocks awaiting customs clearance at ports, and so on, have slipped the present monitoring process. Furthermore, millers and traders/dealers have been observed hoarding their goods in warehouses in the name of farmers in a deliberate attempt to avoid stock declaration.
Senior officers from the Department visited various locations, including Indore, Chennai, Salem, Mumbai, Akola, Latur, Sholapur, Kalaburagi, Jabalpur, and Katni, and interacted with state government officers, millers, traders, importers, and port authorities, as well as meeting with miller, importer, and trade associations. The market participants have been educated on the importance of stock declaration and have been instructed to report their stocks truthfully and on a regular basis, or else the State Government may take strict action such as seizure and confiscation of undeclared assets.
The Importers Association office bearers informed that traders from other states such as Telengana, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka are also importing Tur Dal from Chennai Port and requested clarification on their reporting in the State of Importers or in the State of Receiving the Import to ensure no data duplication. It was clarified that stockpiles should be reported in the state in which they are physically available/stocked.
The Department has already directed State Governments and District Administrations to step up stock declaration enforcement by conducting stock verification and taking strict action on undisclosed stocks in accordance with relevant sections of the EC Act, 1955 and the Prevention of Black Marketing and Maintenance of Supplies of Essential Commodities Act, 1980. States have also been requested to investigate data relevant to FSSAI licences, APMC registration, GST registration, warehouses, and custom bonded warehouses, and to encourage these businesses to report their stock declarations in order to broaden market coverage.
To improve stock disclosure data, the Department is making changes to the e-portal https://fcainfoweb.nic.in/psp/, such as incorporating text boxes for providing warehouse where stock is held, allowing dealers/commission agents/mandi traders to upload stock data of farmers lying in their shop yards for auctioning, and so on.
Furthermore, the Department has contacted Customs to take appropriate action against importers who have purposefully delayed clearance of their consignments. The Department confirms its commitment to continue monitoring Tur and Urad stocks. In this context, additional follow-up inspections are scheduled in addition to the weekly review meetings held by the Committee for Stock Monitoring, chaired by Nidhi Khare, Additional Secretary, Department of Consumer Affairs.
