Warehouse Registration under WDRA

WDRA Registration – For Warehouse

Warehousing Development Regulatory Authority (WDRA)

Enactment of WDRA has framed the Investment in Warehouse sector more lucrative and create the alternatives sources of income. Before this, Renting of warehouse with Govt. Agencies was the main sources of income for a Warehouse. Now a owner of Warehouse can provide storage service in open market. WDRA has opened the Door to farmer, Traders, Primary Processing Units, Grading and Sorting units for storage of their Grain Stock with Registered Warehouse and take the bank loan on such storage items. Indirectly they can save the loss occurred due to market competition and maintain the quality of stored item. Now they can sell their produce as per their convenient and can take the benefits of market price accordingly.

A.  Objectives of WDRA:

The Warehousing Development Regulatory Authority (WDRA) was established under the Warehousing (Development and Regulations) Act, 2007. The Main Objectives of Forming WDRA are as:

1. To Protect the Interest of Farmers
2. To Ensure the Growth and Development of Warehousing Sector
3. To Ensure Easy Financing with low cost
4. Increase in Rural Employment
5. Encourage Scientific Warehousing of Agriculture Produce

B.  Registration of Warehouse with WDRA:

Any Warehouse which has met out the Norms of WDRA, can registered itself with WDRA. The following are the major criteria for registration as:

1. The Warehouse should be constructed as per BIS/CWC/FCI standards.
2. Having all Safety and Security arrangements for food grain stock and premises.
3. Technically Experiences Manpower for operating warehouse activities.
4. Infrastructure for weighing, grading and preservation.
5. Warehouse has it own Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) or adopts the model SOP of WDRA.
6. Insurance has taken for the stock against fire, flood, theft, burglary, misappropriation, riots, strikes or terrorism.
7. Owner must have Net worth as specified by the Authority.
8. Deposits security as specified by the WDRA for securing the negotiable warehouse receipts (NWR) issued by the warehouse.

C. Negotiable Warehouse Receipts (NWR):

NWR is a receipts issued by Warehouse that have the details of Name of Farmer/Depositor, Stored items Name, Quantity and Quality etc. This receipts can be used as a Negotiable Instruments and a bank loan can be raised against such NWR.

From September 2018 onward, electronic NWR has been launched and now all the registered warehouses are on boarded to Repository System for issuing eNWR against the deposits. The depositor can use eNWR to get loans against underlying commodities from banks.

D. Benefits to Farmer/Depositor of Food Grain Stock with Warehouse:

Warehouses which are registered with WDRA, can issue NWR to the Farmers or Depositor of Food Grains in such Warehouse. With this NWR, farmer can avail loan from a Bank and can avoid distress sales of agricultural produce during the peak marketing season and to avoid the post-harvest storage loss.

E. Benefits to Warehouse Owner:

1. Open the market for more storage services
2. Reduce the dependency on Singly Renting Agencies
3. Increased the Standard of Scientific Storage
4. Reduce the risk of storage item
5. eNWR System makes it wider accessibility and promote the branding of Warehouse.
6. Better liquidity due to having bank finance facility against NWR. It will indirectly reduce the loss of bad debts.
7. Better return on Investment.

Note: There are special relaxation for Farmer Producer Organization (FPO’s) and Primary Agriculture Co-operative Societies (PACS) in registration fees and security deposition along with relaxation in Required NET Worth Norms.

So, if you are running warehouse business or interested to start warehouse busines then you should go for WDRA Registration.

To know more, contact with us at:

Jitender Kumar (90171-51780, email: jitender@kipfinancial.com)

KIP Financial Consultancy Pvt. Ltd.

DSB – 38, KIP Complex, Red Square Market, Hisar – 125001, Haryana.