Indian Government has “prohibited” wheat export on Friday citing a “sudden spike in the global prices of wheat arising out of many factors”, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry has informed.
The order came two days after the Government decided to send trade delegations to a number of countries to explore possibilities of export of wheat.
The move to ban wheat exports comes after huge crop loss due to a heatwave. The government is also under pressure to rein in inflation that surged to 7.79 per cent in April.
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry also placed the export of onion seeds under the “prohibited” category. Both the orders regarding wheat and onion seeds have come into effect immediately, reports The Hindu.
The global agriculture market has been destabilised by the Russian invasion of Ukraine, a major wheat-producing nation that is a significant supplier to the European market.
On Thursday, a government statement said, “India has set a target of a record 10 million tonnes of wheat in 2022-23 amid rising global demand for the grain globally.”
Apart from national requirements, the order also cites the priorities of the South Asian neighbourhood in dealing with the spike in global wheat prices.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during his recent visit to Germany, claimed that India “has stepped forward to feed the world” amid a global shortage of wheat.
“Whenever humanity is faced with a crisis, India comes up with a solution,” he said.
