The government has so far transferred around Rs 13,000 crore directly to the bank accounts of the farmers of Punjab and Haryana against the procurement of wheat crop at minimum support price (MSP).

Of the total sum, as much as Rs 4,670 crore has been transferred into the bank accounts of Haryana's farmers, while a sum of Rs 8,180 crore has been transferred to the bank accounts of Punjab's farmers.

The development gains significance as it is the first time that Punjab and Haryana's farmers have received the MSP money directly into their bank accounts. Earlier, the transfer used to be routed through the commission agents (arhatiyas) who used to deduct their own share before passing on the remaining sum to the farmers.

As per the Union Food Ministry, the new mechanism has ensured swift payments to farmers without any delay and cuts, reports Times of India.

As of Sunday (25 April), the government has procured 222.33 Lakh Metric Tonne (LMT) of wheat during this marketing season, which is significantly higher than the 77.57 LMT procured during the same time last year.

Of the total, 38 per cent of the procurement has come from Punjab, 32 per cent from Haryana and another 23 per cent from Madhya Pradesh. This has already benefited about 21.17 lakh wheat farmers.