Telangana has agreed to supply the Centre with 8 lakh tonnes of fortified parboiled rice. This is in addition to the 6 lt it agreed to buy from the state. Following a squabble earlier this year, the Centre stated that it will not purchase parboiled rice produced in the state during the rabi season.
It stated that it will only purchase white (raw) rice, which the State believes will result in losses because paddy-to-rice conversion in rabi is poor due to grain breakage.
The situation became more complicated when two weeks of nonstop rain and flooding damaged paddy stocks stored in mills across the state. Concerned about the possibility of losing approximately 5 litres of paddy that had become soaked in water, the State Government approached the Centre, asking if it could supply fortified parboiled rice to the Food Corporation of India (FCI).
Responding to the State's July 30 request, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution wrote to Telangana's Civil Supplies Commissioner, agreeing to purchase an additional 8 lakh tonnes of fortified parboiled rice.
The Centre would supplement supplies to its flagship programme, which aims to provide fortified rice (rice fortified with iron, folic acid, and vitamin B12) through the public distribution system. The scheme, which was launched late last year, is being implemented in stages across the country.
Rice fortification, which involves the addition of micronutrients such as iron, folic acid, and vitamin B12, is an effective, preventive, and cost-effective complementary strategy for addressing the nutrition problem in a timely manner. Parboiling is a rice hydrothermal treatment that entails soaking, heating, and drying. Parboiled rice accounts for about 15% of the world's milled rice consumption.
