New Delhi: The Department of Food & Public Distribution said on Sunday that the government has no intentions to import wheat because it already has enough supplies to suit the needs of the entire nation.
According to the government, the Food Corporation of India (FCI) has enough inventory for general distribution.
“There is no such plan to import wheat into India. Country has sufficient stocks to meet our domestic requirements and @FCI_India has enough stock for pubic distribution,” tweeted Department of Food & Public Distribution.
The assertions are made in light of some rumours claiming that India may import the grain. While the entire foodgrain production is anticipated to have reached a record 315.72 million tonnes in the 2021–22 crop year, India’s wheat production is anticipated to have decreased by about 3% to 106.84 million tonnes.
A heatwave that caused shrivelled crops in the northern states of Punjab and Haryana is thought to have decreased wheat production.
The agriculture ministry just announced the fourth advance estimate for the 2021–22 crop year, and it predicts record output for rice, maize, gramme, pulses, rapeseed and mustard, oilseeds, and sugarcane.
In order to increase domestic supplies and keep prices under control, a group representing wheat flour millers demanded earlier this month that the government eliminate the 40% import levy on wheat.
According to a statement from the organisation, members of the Roller Flour Millers’ Federation of India met with Food Secretary Sudhanshu Pandey on Wednesday to discuss the problem of rising prices and a shortage of wheat on the market.
Anjani Agarwal, the president of the federation, claimed that in the previous 15 days, the price of wheat has jumped by Rs 300–350 per quintal.
Even though the harvest season finished barely a month ago and the next crop won’t be ready for eight months, the industry association has expressed concerns about the scarcity of wheat and the sharp increase in price in the previous few days.
Additionally, through a bid process for user businesses, it has required the release of wheat under the Open Market Sales Scheme (OMSS).
India had imposed a ban on wheat exports in May in an effort to lower prices amid worries that a sweltering heat wave would negatively affect wheat production.
The government announced in July that wheat stocks in FCI godowns are anticipated to reach 134 lakh tonnes at the start of the upcoming fiscal year, which is 80% higher than the buffer standard.
Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Piyush Goyal stated that as of July 1, 2022, the central pool wheat stock is significantly higher than the foodgrain stocking standards in a written response to the Rajya Sabha.
During the fiscal years 2021–2022, India exported a record 7 million tonnes of wheat.
Due to lower prices for manufactured goods and food items, wholesale price-based inflation inched down to a five-month low of 13.93% in July. From 14.39% in June to 10.77% in July, food-related inflation decreased.
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