Sangrur district is leading in terms of paddy arrival. (Representational)
Over 160 lakh tonnes of paddy has arrived in Punjab mandis till Tuesday in the kharif season, which is 26 per cent higher over arrival in the corresponding period of last procurement season.
During the current kharif season, 160.65 lakh tonnes of paddy has arrived in state mandis so far as against about 127.46 tonnes during the corresponding period last year, Punjab Mandi Board Chairman Lal Singh said in Chandigarh.
Of this, 158.52 lakh tonnes of paddy stands procured across the state. Mr Singh said as many as 28.69 lakh passes have been issued by the Mandi Board so far to the farmers through arthiyas (commission agents) to bring paddy to mandis.
He said the Mandi Board has established 4,260 purchase centres this year, which is more than double of 1,839 centres last year.
Sangrur district is leading in terms of paddy arrival, with 14.88 tonnes of crop having arrived in the mandis, followed by Patiala and Ludhiana with 14.40 lakh tonnes and 13.39 lakh tonnes, respectively, Mr Singh added.