Food Ministry's top official said on Wednesday that India is not planning to restrict wheat exports, despite earlier reports that the world's second largest producer of the grain was considering restrictions after a heat wave damaged crops.
As per the officials, the country can still easily export at least 8 million tonnes of wheat in the current fiscal year, which began in April, and the government would only consider export restrictions if there was a sudden, unexpected surge in overseas shipments.
"There is no move to restrict wheat exports because the country has sufficient wheat stocks," Food Secretary Sudhanshu Pandey told Reuters.
Bloomberg previously reported that India was considering the move after hot weather curtailed its production prospects, adding to global supply concerns sparked by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which has resulted in soaring food inflation.
According to the report, which cites an unnamed source, top officials are discussing the move and will recommend it to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who will then make the decision.
India, which has had five consecutive years of record harvests, has reduced its wheat output forecast to 105 million tonnes from 111.3 tonnes in February as a sudden sharp rise in temperatures in mid-March reduced crop yields.
In a speech to the Indian diaspora in Germany on Tuesday, Modi said Indian farmers are stepping forward to sell wheat on the global market as many countries struggle to meet supplies.
"Big nations are concerned about food security, and right now, India's farmers are stepping up to feed the world," Modi said.
According to the World Food Programme's Chief Economist Arif Husain, the UN's World Food Programme (WFP) is in talks with India to procure wheat for countries facing a food crisis as a result of supply disruptions caused by the Ukraine war. "We are in talks with India about procurement of wheat, and that is something that is ongoing," he said at a news conference here on Wednesday to launch the 2022 Global Report on Food Crises.
