Indian bans wheat exports to keep prices in check

The central government has taken a big decision amid rising wheat prices. On Saturday, the government banned the export of wheat with immediate effect. Wheat has been kept in the restricted category. It has been said by the government that this step has been taken in view of the food security of the country. At the same time, it was necessary to do this to support neighboring countries and poor countries. Meanwhile, consignments which were to be exported before the order came into effect will be allowed.

Information given in the notification of DGFT

The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) has said in a notification issued on May 13 that export of consignments for which irrevocable letters of credit (LoCs) have been issued on or before the date of this notification will be allowed. Due to the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine, wheat prices have increased strongly all over the world. Domestic wheat prices have also increased in India. In many major states, the process of government procurement is going on very slow and wheat has been procured much less than the target. The reason for this is that farmers are getting more price in the market than the Minimum Support Price (MSP).

Record wheat exports in April

Significantly, India is the second largest producer of wheat in the world. The country exported a total of 70 lakh tonnes of wheat for the financial year 2021-22, while in the month of April last, India has exported a record 14 lakh tonnes of wheat. Inflation is touching the sky in the country, retail inflation has once again reached 7.79 percent in the month of April, taking a giant leap. Meanwhile, inflation on food articles has reached a level of 8.38 per cent in April.

Onion comes out of banned category

Due to the Russia-Ukraine war, the price of wheat has increased by more than 40 percent in the international markets, due to which the export of wheat has increased. Accordingly, the prices of wheat and wheat flour are also touching the sky amid increasing demand at the domestic level. According to a report, the price of flour has increased by about 13 percent so far as compared to last year. Along with banning the export of wheat with immediate effect, DGFT informed in a second notification that the export policy of onion seeds has also been changed and it has been kept under limited category with immediate effect. Earlier the export of onion seeds was also in the restricted category.