The Hindu : Karnataka / Bangalore News : India unlikely to import wheat

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Friday, Feb 08, 2008
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Karnataka

Karnataka - Bangalore

India unlikely to import wheat

Special Correspondent

Bumper harvest expected after good monsoon this year

Two-day international seminar on ‘Wheat and Wheat Products: Vision 2020’ from today
India must increase production to 92 million tonnes by 2020

BANGALOre: There is no immediate necessity for India to import wheat this year on account of good monsoons and a bumper harvest “unless the Government fails on the procurement front” said Vinod Kapoor, former president of Roller Flour Millers’ Federation of India.

Addressing presspersons ahead of a two-day international seminar on “Wheat and Wheat Products: Vision 2020” that begins here on Friday, Mr. Kapoor said a favourable climate and good monsoon had favoured a good crop. He added that there should be a harvest of more than 75 million tonnes in 2008, which was slightly higher than that of 2007 yield.

Private traders were also unlikely to import in 2008, Mr. Kapoor said.

As chairman of the organising committee of the seminar, Mr. Kapoor said that stocks at the start of the marketing season beginning on April 1 should be around five million tonnes, compared with about four million a year earlier, which should discourage the Centre from importing wheat. Wheat is usually sown in October-November and harvested by March-April. The minimum support price for wheat has been fixed at Rs. 1,000 a quintal for the winter crop.

Previous import

India is the world’s second-biggest wheat producer (75 million tonnes) and consumer (73 million tonnes) after China. China’s production was 100 million tonnes.

History in the making

In 2006, the country imported wheat for the first time in this century.

Stock build up

Last year, it imported 1.8 million tonnes to control prices and build up stocks, Mr. Kapoor said. The global production of wheat is expected to touch 645 million tonnes this year.

Noting that 79 per cent of the output in the country was used for human consumption, Mr. Kapoor said the sharp rise in the prices of wheat in the global markets posed a grave threat to food security in India.

Target

The country needed to gear up to hike production to 92 million tonnes by 2020.

The National Food Security Mission had been launched in 138 districts last year to increase wheat production by eight million tonnes by 2012.

Climate change, excessive use of ground water and decline in soil fertility had reduced the production in Punjab and Haryana, said M.K. Dattaraj, president, Roller Flour Millers’ Federation of India.

“The central part of India is fairly comfortable in wheat production. The area under wheat has increased,” he said.

The international seminar will discuss several issues in production, quality and distribution, with particular focus on India’s increasing influence on international wheat trade.

About 30 speakers from the industry and Central Government organisations will express their views on issues contributing to changing environment reflecting on production and trade.

Seminar

Delegates from Canada, the US, Germany and Middle East, besides farmers’ groups, major Indian traders in commodities, machinery and additive manufacturers, processors and manufacturers of wheat-based products on the domestic front, are expected to participate in the seminar.

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