While catering to the rising demand for critical food supplies, Adani Agri Logistics Limited (AALL), a unit of the Adani Ports and Special Economic Zones Ltd (APSEZ), dispatched 30,000 metric tonnes of foodgrains during the lockdown, thereby securing the foodgrain supply chain.
Adani Agri Logistics said that seven trains that are owned and operated by the company for ferrying food grains from production centres in northern India to consumption centres, have been instrumental in enabling the movement.
“What Adani Agri Logistics achieved during the difficult lockdown goes beyond business goals and benchmarks of efficiency. It not just ensured that critical food supplies were accessible to the needy but made it convenient for farmers who have stood by India during this grave humanitarian crisis.”
~Karan Adani, Chief Executive Officer, APSEZ.
More than 25,000 farmers connected to the Adani Agri Logistics automated grain silo network saved Rs130 per ton, which otherwise was spent on handling and cleaning charges. The seamless process also saved them 2 to 3 man-days which easily get consumed in selling their supplies at traditional mandis.
The Food Corporation of India’s (FCI) strategic reserves of foodgrain stocks have been of grave help during this critical period.
Rake movement by the depots of Adani Agri Logistics continued to cater to FCI’s orders from silos in the producing states of Punjab and Haryana to the field depot silos located in the consuming states.
The company spearheads a network of food grain storage silos across 14 locations in the country with a whopping storage capacity of 875,000 MT per annum, that is of service to nearly 1.5 crore people.
The Centre’s welfare scheme at the beginning of the lockdown, named Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana (PMGKAY) distributes 5 kg food grains free of cost to all the National Food Security Act (NFSA) beneficiaries for three months apart from other regular welfare schemes.
Supporting the task undertaken by FCI and various state governments, Adani Agri Logistics moved 30,000 MT of foodgrains during four weeks of lockdown. With 5 kg food grains per beneficiary, 30,000 MT of food grains into the Public Distribution System (PDS) translated into feeding over 60 lakh citizens across multiple states such Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Bengal.
Adani Agri Logistics has also actively commenced the wheat procurement process of rabi crop in Punjab, Haryana and Madhya Pradesh, it said.
That the government should draft a policy on creating ‘Strategic Reserve of Food Grain in Silos’ to handle such unforeseen calamities in future, was a recurrent thought, echoed by one of the company officials.
The Food Supply Chain plays an indispensable role in nurturing life and sustenance to the people.With the ongoing pandemic causing ripples in the supply chain, it is pertinent for the sector to gear up and take recourse to long term strategies that can help India tide over the repercussions of the pandemic.
In the May Feature Story , the impact of COVID-19 on the Food Supply Chain and what lies ahead for the sector, as it wards off the disruptions in the chain, has been duly covered.
