DW BUREAU / Chandigarh

Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Singh Badal on Sunday urged the Union government to reduce the minimum exports price (MEP) of basmati rice from USD 950 to USD 750 per tonne to ensure a better price for farmers as well as increase competitiveness of the variety in the international market.

In a statement here, the SAD president said even though a bumper harvest was expected this year basmati farmers would not be benefitted from the same in case the government did not review the MEP for the rice variety.

"This is also necessary to fulfil the government's intention to double farmers income," he added.

Badal said basmati exporters were in no position to purchase the variety from farmers this year because their godowns were full due to restrictive export policies since the last two years.

"The industrialists are not able to export at the current MEP because Pakistan is exporting the product at an MEP of USD 750 per tonne. This has also affected the international basmati market and caused uncertainty," he said.

He said a review of the MEP on basmati would give a fillip to exports and also result in a spike in the prices in the country, which would help farmers in the northern region including Punjab and Haryana.

Badal simultaneously called for withdrawal of the ban on the export of non-basmati white rice as well as the 20 per cent duty imposed on the export of parboiled rice. He said while the country was losing out on precious foreign exchange, farmers were also in economic distress due to stagnation of prices.

"We should allow exports of both basmati rice as well as non-basmati rice by removing the present restrictions for the welfare of farmers,"

Badal said.
(editor@dailyworld.in)