Warehousing Development Regulatory Authority

Why is in news? Produce stored in Warehousing Development Regulatory Authority (WDRA) registered warehouses has greater security compared with unregistered warehouses: Centre

The Warehousing Development and Regulatory Authority (WDRA) under the Department of Food and Public Distribution, Government of India organized an outreach programme on “registration of warehouses with WDRA” on 28.08.2023 at Baba Jitto Kisan Kendra, Directorate of Agriculture, Gole Pully, Talab Tillo, Jammu to promote registration of warehouses with WDRA.

WDRA highlighted that the produce stored in WDRA registered warehouses has greater security compared with unregistered warehouses.

Electronic negotiable warehouse receipt is safer compared with paper receipts especially as chances of fraud against paper receipts are very high. e-NWR is a negotiable instrument backed by the WDRA Act 2007.

The benefits of WDRA registered warehouses including various insurances, periodic inspections, scientific storage with SOP, etc. to safeguard the interest of depositors and bankers.

About WDRA:

It was constituted in 2010 under the Warehousing (Development and Regulation) Act, 2007.

It was an initiative of public policy where the benefits of technology had been transferred into benefits for farmer with the objective to make e-NWR a prime tool of trade, increase rural liquidity, increase farmers’ income, reduce post-harvest losses, etc.

Objective:

The main objective of WDRA is to implement Negotiable Warehouse Receipt (NWR) System in the country.

The main functions of the Authority are to make provisions for the development and regulation of warehouses which interalia includes negotiability of warehouse receipts, registration of warehouses, promotion of scientific warehousing of goods, improving fiduciary trust of depositors and banks, enhancing liquidity in rural areas and promoting efficient supply chain.

Negotiable Warehouse Receipt:

It was launched in 2011 by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution.

Benefits:

Farmers can seek loans from banks against the warehouse receipts issued to them against their storage.

These receipts issued by the warehouses registered with the WDRA would become a fully negotiable instrument backed by a Central legislation.

Electronic Negotiable Warehouse Receipt (e-NWR):

It has negotiability and can be used for deposit and withdrawal of commodities as well as trade transactions such as transfer and Pledge.

It was launched in 2017.

It has been integrated with the electronic National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) platform by providing an interface between e-NAM and repositories.

Electronic Non-Negotiable Warehouse Receipt (e-NNWR), which can be used only for deposit and withdrawal of commodities (generally issued for goods received in the warehouse with pending final assaying reports or if assaying is not desired by the applicant) without the facility of trade / transfer.