President of Basmati Growers Association (BGA), Chaudhry Hamid Malhi has demanded that a Minimum Export Price (MEP) of $1150/ton be enforced immediately for all Basmati Rice exports to stabilise the market price above Rs 2200 per 40 Kg and to facilitate marketing of the surplus stocks of Basmati Rice at a rate above Rs 4000 per 40 kg, which is lying unsold with the traders/millers and exporters.
The BGA President in a statement issued here on Thursday said that a 'Basmati Rice Policy' should immediately be announced to benefit the Basmati sector. The Basmati farmers have suffered yield losses due to floods and now at harvest time the market price is Rs 1300-1500 per 40 kg which is nearly half of what they got last year @Rs 2600 per 40kg. Basmati Rice exports have increased from 630 Million Tons to 734 Million Tons (+16.5%) and the average export price has also increased from $995/Ton to $1153/Ton (+16%). Basmati Rice export earnings have increased from 626.691 million dollars to 846.24 million dollars in 2013-14 (+35%), he added.
He said while the quantity of Basmati rice exports and the average rate per ton received during 2013-14 increased by 16%, even then the domestic traders/ millers & rice exporters are not willing to pay a reasonable price to the Basmati farmer. The burden of the last year's stocks still lying unsold with the traders/millers & exporters is one big excuse which is being forwarded for these low Basmati paddy prices.
In light of these facts, it is unimaginable as to how prices of Basmati paddy and rice are being depressed by a few major players in this sector. This cartelization for depressing the prices of Basmati paddy needs to be taken up by the Competition Commission of Pakistan to nail the offenders and impose huge fines to deter them from such negative tactics in future, Malhi said and added that the induction of PASSCO or TCP would be futile at this stage. The govt should devise other means to compensate the farmers.
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