Govt to amend Essential Commodities Act to deregulate cereals, edible oil, pulses

The government will amend the six-and-a-half-decade old Essential Commodities Act to deregulate food items, including cereals, edible oil, oilseeds, pulses, onion and potato, FM said.

New Delhi: The government will amend the six-and-a-half-decade old Essential Commodities Act to deregulate food items, including cereals, edible oil, oilseeds, pulses, onion and potato, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said on Friday.

The amendment, besides deregulating production and sale of food products, will provide for no stock limit to be imposed on any produce.

There is a need to unable better price realisation for farmers by attracting investments and making agriculture sector competitive.

A stock limit will be imposed only under very exceptional circumstances like national calamities, famine with a surge in prices.

Also, no stock limit shall apply to processors or value chain participants, she said announcing the third tranche of economic relief package to deal with COVID-19 disruptions.

Also, agriculture marketing reforms will be done to provide marketing choices to farmers.

(PTI Report)