NEW DELHI: India, the world's second-largest wheat producer, will continue its ban on wheat exports as part of measures to control rising domestic prices, according to the Centre. However, the government will consider allowing shipments of the foodgrain through diplomatic channels on a case-to-case basis. While India is not a traditional wheat exporting nation, it has exported wheat over the past three years due to surplus supplies. A government-to-government trade agreement is currently in place for the supply of a restricted amount of wheat to Nepal and Bhutan by the government.

Over the last three years, the country has been exporting Wheat in the range of 2-7 million tonnes annually. However, due to climatic reasons, last year's production was lower, resulting in exports of only 5 million tonnes. The good news is that this year's production is higher than last year, with an expected availability of 10 million tonnes more. This increase in production is necessary to meet both domestic consumption and to provide Wheat at reasonable prices in the domestic market.

To ensure adequate supply, Wheat procurement for the 2023-23 marketing year (April-March) has already reached 26.2 million tonnes. Even after meeting the Public Distribution System's requirements, the FCI will still have an extra 8.5-9 million tonnes of Wheat.

Wheat prices have experienced an increase following the end of the harvesting and procurement season, which is a common trend for commodities. While prices tend to be lower during the actual harvest, there is a subsequent rise in prices once supplies from farmers deplete and traders take over. The government has forecasted a record Wheat production of 112.18 million tonnes for the 2023-24 crop year (July-June).