The quality of rice samples from Punjab has been judged to be either unfit for human eating or above the rejection level, which has intensified the political disagreement between the Centre and Punjab over the acquisition of paddy. The Food Corporation of India (FCI) has been notified by the Punjab government that rice that is delivered to states such as Arunachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Assam, and Nagaland is unsafe for human consumption. The FCI has been asked by the government to look into the matter and assess the grain quality.
Due to bug infestation, 11,241 quintals of rice samples from Dimapur and Assam failed quality testing, and the fortified rice was subpar. According to a state government source, FCI is responsible for maintaining grain quality and the infestation was not their fault. According to Tarsem Saini, head of the Punjab Rice Millers’ Association, the FCI is plotting against Punjab by pressuring farmers to diversify without any strategies for doing so and by refusing to move rice out of godowns.
This is the first time that the Indian Ministry of Food has received complaints about rice quality in four states. An examination of 19 rice samples at Food Storage Depots in Banderdewa, Arunachal Pradesh, set off the problem. According to the letter, 15 of the 19 samples were deemed unsafe for human consumption because they exceeded the BRL, while three of them above the FSSAI criteria.
