India is to keep a window open to export wheat to food-deficit countries in the South Asian Countries at the government level despite restrictions announced earlier.
India’s Commerce Secretary B.V.R. Subrahmanyam told reporters the government will also allow private companies to meet previous commitments to export nearly 4.3 million tons of wheat until July. India exported 1 million tons of wheat in April, inmdian news agencies reported.
India mainly exports wheat to neighboring countries like Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka imports $6.23million worth Wheat Flours, mainly from India ($3.26M), Turkey ($2.31M), United Arab Emirates ($584k), Indonesia ($51.3k), and China ($7.52k).
From April 2021 – March 21, 2022, Sri Lanka Imported exports of wheat to, Sri Lanka stood at5,80,819 tonnes; The total wheat export stood at 70.30 lakh tonnes till March 21 this fiscal, with maximum shipments to Bangladesh followed by Sri Lanka and UAE,
As both Ukraine and Russia are major exporters of wheat with more than 25 per cent total share in the global wheat trade, there is scope for India to increase exports of wheat, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Anupriya Patel said.
A notice in the government gazette by the Directorate of Foreign Trade on Friday said a spike in global prices for wheat was threatening the food security of India and neighboring and vulnerable countries.
A key aim of restrictions on exports is to control rising domestic prices. Global wheat prices have risen by more than 40% since the beginning of the year.
Before the war, Ukraine and Russia accounted for a third of global wheat and barley exports. Since Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion, Ukraine’s ports have been blocked and civilian infrastructure and grain silos have been destroyed.
At the same time, India’s own wheat harvest has suffered from a record-shattering heat wave that is stunting production.
He said India’s wheat production this year has come down by three million tons from 106 million tons last year. Wheat prices have shot up by 20-40% in India
