Which of the following statements is/are correct regarding the government's regulation of food grains?
1. The Essential Commodities Act empowers the Central Government to impose stock limits on agricultural commodities to check hoarding.
2. The Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS) is primarily used by the Food Corporation of India to procure grains from farmers at the Minimum Support Price.

Question

Accepted Answer

A. 1 only — Statement 1 is correct as the Essential Commodities Act allows the government to regulate supply and impose stock limits to stabilize prices. Statement 2 is incorrect because under the Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS), the FCI sells surplus food grains in the open market to bulk consumers and traders to boost supply and cool down prices, rather than procuring grains from farmers.