Govt may have to remove import duty on wheat, Siraj Hussain says
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The government has started deliberating with stakeholders as it is now apprehensive that the offer of 1.5 million tonnes of wheat sales in the open market may not have the desired impact to curb any price rise. On the other hand, many experts have conveyed the government that removal of import duty of 40 per cent on wheat may help improve domestic availability and check any further price rise.
“Going forward, the government may consider allowing import at zero duty, so that the private sector can import wheat. This may help contain food inflation, especially if the monsoon rains are deficient due to El-Nino,” said Siraj Hussain, a former CMD of Food Corporation of India (FCI) and also a former agriculture secretary.
