The wheat inflation could have been put under control with timely release of the grain in open market, said a senior official
However, traders and experts said that, as prices are not reflected in the wholesale market despite 2 lakh tonnes now being sold every week, the government needs to identify the reasons and take corrective actions, including direct participation by traders.
Data shows that, a day after the Food Corporation of India’s weekly e-auction, which is held every Wednesday, the all-India average wholesale price moved up to ₹2,903/quintal on October 22, ₹2,928 on October 29, ₹2,938 on November 5 and ₹2,940 on November 12.
According to Consumer Affairs Ministry data, the all-India wholesale price of wheat has been rising every week, contrary to the price trend shown in FCI’s e-auction, which is either falling or constant.
Rice inflation 12.5%
Driven by high food prices, retail inflation based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) breached the upper limit of the 2-6 per cent target range in October for the first time in two years. It was recorded at 6.09 per cent. Food inflation spiked to 8.94 per cent from 7.74 per cent in September. However, in cereal category, rice inflation was 12.51 per cent against 3.05 per cent in wheat.
The wheat inflation could have been put under control with timely release of the grain in open market, said a senior official, adding the government is also keeping a close watch on the market rates of both wheat and atta (raw wheat flour).
“The government has allowed actual users to participate in the auction with a quantitative limit of 300 tonne per week for each bidder, resulting in many food companies buying the wheat and selling it to traders since market rates are higher compared to the government’s rates,” said a trader. He also alleged that some rice mills have falsely showing as wheat processor and buying the grain from the government.
More participants
The wheat auction results show that after the government doubled the quantity in the weekly auction, there has been a substantial jump in participation, despite a cap of 300 tonnes per tender on large floor mill/processor and 50 tonnes on small processing unit.
For instance, the number of successful bidders in Punjab was 204 on October 21, which surged to 325 on November 11. Similarly the number of successful participants in Haryana has surged from 71 to 135, in Rajasthan from 65 to 94, in Uttar Pradesh from 53 to 89, in Madhya Pradesh from 27 to 80 and in Delhi from 35 to 66.
The government needs to find out where the wheat is going if a small unit is buying a 500 quintals (maximum) limit, even if its weekly capacity is much lower, traders said, adding that several people have joined the auction as even at ₹15-100 margin, one can earn a good profit as market rates are higher. They cite the instance of Punjab, where there are about 80 flour mills and 10 large “atta chaki” ,whereas FCI sold wheat to 325 bidders and said that the situation is similar in almost all the wheat producing States.
“We cannot buy from these people even if they offer the FCI wheat as we have to account for every transaction. It is wiser to buy from open market even if the same FCI’s auction wheat is routed through the market,” said a leading flour miller of Punjab. He also wondered why the quantity on offer every week has been fluctuating from 25,000 tonnes to 44,000 tonnes, to 40,000 tonnes and now at 38,000 tonnes for November 18 round.
Published on November 15, 2026
