Turkey returned India's wheat: 17 lakh tonnes of wheat sent abroad were stuck at ports, to fear of damage due to rain

About 17 lakh tonnes of India's wheat is stuck at various ports. It is likely to get worse in the rain. India had allowed the shipment of 469,202 tonnes of wheat abroad since the ban on exports last month. These shipments have mainly moved to Bangladesh, the Philippines, Tanzania, and Malaysia. On May 14, the export of wheat was banned because of the situation arising out of the scorching heat and domestic prices going to record high. However, exports were allowed under the exception of those shipments which were to be sent through letters of credit already issued. Also, exemptions were given to countries that had sought India's help to meet their food security needs.

Meanwhile, Turkey returned a consignment of 56,877 tonnes of wheat from India on 29 May amid the wheat crisis between Russia-Ukraine. An Istanbul-based businessman was said to have found the rubella virus in wheat, which prompted the Turkish Ministry of Agriculture to send the consignment back to the port of Kandla. The ship will be back by mid-June. India's Food Secretary Sudhanshu Pandey said that the government has sought information from the Turkish authorities and the exporters claim that all necessary approvals were taken for this.

sent more wheat in the hope of a good harvest

According to three dealers of global companies, before the ban was imposed, exporters had shipped wheat in large quantities to the ports. By that time good crop yields were expected. Traders expected India to clear shipments of 8 million to 10 million tonnes or more this year. Last year exports of 72 lakh tonnes were allowed.

Kandla and Mundra Port have maximum wheat

A dealer of a global trading firm in Mumbai said that Kandla and Mundra Ports have the maximum stock of wheat. More than 1.3 million tonnes of wheat are lying at these two ports. The government was required to issue export permits immediately. This was because wheat was in the open at the ports. It can come at any time in the grip of rain. A dealer said it was not possible to move wheat out of the ports and into the inner cities for local consumption. This will cause even more losses to the traders due to loading and transportation costs.

The government deal must be approved

Dealers said the government should allow the export of wheat lying at the ports for the government deal. Significantly, many countries facing a shortage of India have demanded a supply of more than 1.5 million tonnes of wheat.

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