Must cash-in on big opportunity in wheat exports for India: Modi

Amid a pick up in wheat exports from India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Tuesday asked industry, trade departments, exporters and financial institutions to tap the opportunity and a portion of global wheat exports, apparently to plug the vacuum created by Russia and Ukraine, who together account for a quarter of the world's wheat shipment but are currently mired in crisis.

India is the second largest wheat producer in the world but accounts less than one per cent of global wheat export.

"The globe's attraction towards India's wheat has increased of late. Are our financial institutions, export-import department and shipping industry ready for this? Are they making comprehensive attempts to cash-in on the big opportunity that has arisen for India," Modi said at a post-Budget webinar on financing for India's growth.

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He said if India encashes the opportunity now and provides the world with the best quality and service in the area of wheat then the world may steadily begin to rely on India for wheat on a permanent basis.

India's wheat exports are mainly to neighbouring countries with Bangladesh having the largest share of more than 54 per cent in both volume and value terms in 2020-21. In 2020-21, India entered new wheat markets such as Yemen, Afghanistan, Qatar and Indonesia.

The top ten importing countries for Indian wheat in 2020-21 are Bangladesh, Nepal, United Arab Emirates, Sri Lanka, Yemen, Afghanistan, Qatar, Indonesia, Oman and Malaysia, according to data by Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics (DGCIS).

Top ten countries which accounted for more than 94 per cent of India’s wheat exports in 2016-17, now have 99 per cent share in exports in 2020-21 both volume and value terms.

Though India is not among the top ten wheat exporters in the global trade, its rate of growth in exports have surpassed that of all these countries, indicating the rapid strides it is taking in reaching new markets worldwide.

The Prime Minister said the country also must work together to find out sectors where it can figure in the top three countries of the world.

He asked whether India can emerge among the top three countries in the sectors like constructions, startups, recently opened up sectors like drones, space and geo-spatial data?

For that, he said, it is imperative that our industry and start up get full support of the financial sector. The expansion of entrepreneurship, innovation and search for new markets among the startups will happen only when there is deep understanding of these ideas of the future among those who finance them.

“Our Financing Sector will also have to consider innovative financing and sustainable risk management of new futuristic ideas and initiatives”, he said, asking lenders to support the rural economy and emerging businesses.

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