Government to import expensive wheat
New Delhi: The government may have to shell out Rs2,460 more per tonne for imported wheat than it paid to farmers in its recent procurement programme.

Sources said quotes for this tender could be as high as $320 (Rs12,960) a tonne. In comparison, the government paid Rs8,500 a tonne to farmers, including a bonus of Rs1,000.

Last year, India imported 5.5 million tonnes of wheat at an average price of around $205 a tonne. Prices have risen this year because of an export ban in Ukraine, India's strict phyto-sanitary norms (that prevent the US from selling wheat to India) and expectation of a lower harvest in Australia.

For these reasons, bids are expected only from Canada, Russia and some European countries. Also, international rates spiral whenever India decides to import wheat.

The government is being forced to import wheat as the recent procurement fell short of the target. It bought around 11 million tonnes against a target of 15 million tonnes. This, however, is about 1.77 million tonnes higher than last year.

India has so far received seven bids for a 1 million ton tender. India called bids on June 26 for the grain to be delivered between August and November. Suppliers had until Wednesday to submit offers, according to the tender document.

India had 13.3 million tons of wheat in state warehouses as of May 31, less than the 17.1 million tons the government needs to store by July 1. Imports may rise to 5 million tons this year to cope with emergencies, Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar said on May 12.
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