The Food Corporation of India was set up in 1965 “against the backdrop of major shortage of grains, especially wheat, in the country.” The government’s economic glossary defines a buffer stock as “a reserve of a commodity that is used to offset price fluctuations and unforeseen emergencies.”
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs “fixes the minimum buffer norms on quarterly basis.” A government release of 2022 gives the norm for October 1: 205 lakh tonnes of wheat and 103 lakh tonnes of rice.