The export ban on rice and other foodgrains is most likely to stay till the end of November and the review will be made only after the arrival of the new crop.
“Till the new crop comes, whatever restrictions are there will stay in place...possibly by the end of November. When the new crop arrives, we will know the position,” Commerce Secretary G K Pillai said at a CII function here on Monday.
The empowered Group of Ministers, chaired by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, is also meeting tomorrow to review the situation relating to the production, stocks and prices in the open market. It will review the stock availability for the public distribution system.
The government had banned the export of non-basmati rice, wheat, maize and pulses to ensure availability of these commodities in the domestic market and to keep a check on inflation, which has since come closer to 12 per cent.
However, exporters have been demanding that the ban on non-basmati rice be lifted and suggested that the Centre could put a cap on the quantity to be shipped, for its adequate availability in the domestic market.
There are many options available with the government to regulate instead of putting a blanket ban on the exports, All India Rice Exporters Association President Vijay Setia said.
Setia also demanded that the government should identify the varieties, which it would require for the public distribution system and allow other varieties to be exported at a fixed price (MEP).
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The country saw a record production of 96.43 million tonnes of rice in the 2007-08 season. Non-basmati rice prices have risen in the last one year and are currently between Rs 15-22 per kg.
Meanwhile, with the area under paddy cultivation on a rise, the government is mulling exports of about three million tonnes of non-basmati rice to African countries after November.
A bumper crop of 94 million tonnes of non-basmati rice is expected in November, of which six million tonnes would be surplus.