The Food Corporation of India (FCI-Kakinada) has supplied 9.84 lakh metric tonnes (MT) of rice to South India, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, North-eastern States and West Bengal during the COVID-19 pandemic beginning from early 2020.
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The whopping 9.84 lakh MT of rice was supplied to the FCI by the rice millers of the East Godavari district under the FCI’s Custom Milled Rice (CMR) guideline, a mandate for the rice millers as per food security targets.
Speaking to The Hindu , FCI Kakinada Divisional Manager V. Suveen Kumar has said that the 9.84 lakh MT of rice was produced in East Godavari district alone and has been distributed across the country including the Andaman and Nicobar Islands during the pandemic.
“The rice has been supplied in the four spells for the distribution to families below poverty line under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package (PM-GKP). The PM-GKP guarantees free distribution of five kg of rice for the Below Poverty Line families to tackle the food security during the pandemic,” Mr. Suveen Kumar said.
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FCI Kakinada division has a storage space of 2.12 lakh MT in East Godavari district. The storage space is being spared for rice. In East Godavari, the total extent of land under paddy in the Kharif is above 2.25 lakh hectares.