| Photo Credit: SRINATH M/THE HINDU
The FCI also plans to increase rice sales from the central pool stock for which it will allow traders to buy in bulk (minimum 10,000 tonnes) through tender directly from their nearest depot, where FCI will make available the cereal absorbing transport costs, sources said.
Bulk rice sale plan with flexible e-auction model
“The first tender for 4.60 lakh tonnes (lt) under bulk sale was floated on October 17 and where the reserve price of rice has been kept at ₹2,800 per quintal. The e-tender will be open for bidding on October 22. The current open market sale scheme (OMSS) allows a bidder to buy from 1 tonne to 7,000 tonnes in each round from a zone whereas the bulk sale will allow unlimited opportunity to interested traders,” a source said.
A register bidder may place their bid for a minimum quantity of 10,000 tonnes and a maximum of 50,000 tonnes in the e-auction. The successful bidder would have to intimate the receipt railhead destination to concerned general manager of FCI region. “In a single e-auction, stock will be sold in multiples of rake load, to a single buyer or a single group of buyers with one lead buyer,” an FCI official said. The term “rake load‟ shall mean 2,650 tonnes of rice, he added.
Rice sale limited to domestic market
FCI has also clearly mentioned that the rice purchased from it under the scheme through e-auction will be sold domestically and shall not be exported by the bidder.
While Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Assam, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Karnataka have been allowed 50,000 tonnes each under the first round, the quantity is less in the case of the north-east region, Kerala, Delhi and Rajasthan, officials said.
Stock liquidation and consumer experiment
The FCI had 449.57 lt of rice (including 139.22 lt in the form of paddy) in its stock as on October 1, which is more than four times the buffer stock requirement of 102.5 lt prescribed by the government.
On the other hand, the government has also been considering innovations in liquidating the rice stock as the response of cooperative retail chains is not that encouraging, sources said. If FCI can sell directly to consumers, it can open up another avenue of liquidating the grain from the Central Pool, the sources said.
Highlighting that in the recently held World Food India exhibition at Bharat Mandapam, there were about 100 tonnes of rice sold out, similar efforts may be launched at the trade fair scheduled to be held on November 14. There has been a concentration of people from different states in Delhi who prefer consuming rice from their own state, and catering to that section may get an acceptance of FCI rice, a source said. For instance, if parboiled rice from Telangana is made available in Delhi at Rs 30-35/kg, there may be a good demand, he added.
Published on October 21, 2025
