Our marketing strategy should be revised and aggressive selling be done to ensure that India exports 3 to 4 million tonnes of wheat this fiscal year

From a position of weakness and depending upon the assistance of PL-480, India has come a long way in being able to meet its entire national requirement and also, export excess foodgrains to other nations. Though this was actually achieved a few decades ago, what is gratifying to note is the building of a huge agricultural recovery programme that has made self-sufficiency a reality and export, a moral, proud achievement.

But the biggest problem that this sector faces now is the continuous bureaucratic bungling in making decisions. Even when we have special and exclusive products like Basmati rice, where the market may come to us, we are better off, in the long run to meet its requirement by overseas selling. We must remember that there will always be a tendency to create similar products, close clones, and, sometimes "healthy" alternatives and cheaper substitutes.

Moneylife has been covering the issues relating to the substantial stocks of over-flowing foodgrains in our warehouses, be it rice, wheat, soyabean or sugar. We have to move with the market, and the times, to confront our competitors.

We cannot establish a "floor price" based on what we would "prefer to get" but we must match or better what the market traffic can bear. The case in point is the inordinate delay experienced so far in marketing huge surplus stocks of wheat, overcrowding our godowns, thus offering a feast to rodents. The stocks are also, vulnerable to pilferage and damage due to varying weather conditions. We have to take care of various types of pests that attack the foodgrains.

Fortunately, in the recent tenders for supply of wheat, offered through three state agencies, such as STC, MMTC and PEC, bids have been received close to the prevailing market prices quoted by other suppliers from Black Sea region (around $290 per tonne), who have been our principal competitors in the past. They still are, and we need to be on guard, before their fresh supplies come into the market. STC appears to have received a firm bid for 30,000 tonnes of wheat at $286.20 while PEC has firm bid for 30,000 tonnes from Singapore at $289.90 and MMTC received a bid for 50,000 tonnes at $285.95. Full details are awaited, but, as a first step, we should accept these and plan for shipments without delay. In fact, should there be a provision to increase the supplies under these bids. Efforts should be made to ensure that these are also accepted for onward shipments in due course.

Our marketing strategy should be revised and aggressive selling be done to ensure that India exports 3 to 4 million tonnes of wheat this fiscal year. The immediate step must be to take every care needed to send the top quality shipments from the country for meeting the above orders.

(AK Ramdas has worked with the Engineering Export Promotion Council of the ministry of commerce. He was also associated with various committees of the Council. His international career took him to places like Beirut, Kuwait and Dubai at a time when these were small trading outposts; and later to the US.)