The Centre should create a buffer stock of mustard seeds of at least 2.5 million tonnes, like pulses, to enhance domestic production and reduce imports of cooking oils, according to the Central Organization for Oil Industry and Trade (COOIT) as part of its wish list ahead of the budget 2022.
COOIT added that the procurement for the proposed creation of buffer stock should be made at market price at the very beginning of crop season.
COOIT chairperson Suresh Nagpal added that it has urged the government to launch a scheme in the Budget 2022 with a significant allocation to encourage farmers for cultivation of various oilseeds crops like mustard, soyabean and sunflower.
India imported edible oils worth Rs 1.17 lakh crore, in the 2020-21 oil marketing year ended October, mainly due to a sharp rise in global prices.
The government had in August 2021 launched the National Mission on Edible Oils - Oil Palm (NMEO-OP) with a financial outlay of Rs 11,040 crore to boost domestic production of palm oil.
(With inputs from IANS)