Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
Financial Daily from THE HINDU group of publications Wednesday, May 10, 2006 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Home Page
-
Wheat Agri-Biz & Commodities - Standards & Benchmarks Industry & Economy - Exports & Imports Quality norms eased for wheat imports
M.R. Subramani
Wider scope Increased moisture content allowed Change in fumigation requirements Comes in wake of depletion of public stocks
New Delhi/Chennai , May 9 The Government has significantly relaxed quality specifications for import of wheat. This comes out clearly through a comparison of the standards laid down in the State Trading Corporation of India's (STC) latest tender on May 8 with those in its previous tender floated on February 20. (The May 8 tender closes on May 18.) The February 20 tender for five lakh tonnes (l.t) had specified that the imported wheat be "free from moulds." This condition finds no mention in the latest tender for 30 l.t (in parcel size of 30,000-50,000 tonnes). Similarly, against the earlier stringent specification that the wheat "shall be completely free from Argemone mexicana, Lathyrus sativus, dwarf bunt (Tilletia contraversa) and ergot (Cleviceps purpurea)," the new tender stops at the first two.It permits presence of the other two fungal pathogens - dwarf bunt and ergot fungi - to the extent of 0.005 per cent and 0.01 per cent respectively. Likewise, the February 20 tender had stipulated maximum moisture content of 12 per cent, with every additional basis point increase up to 13 per cent attracting a proportionate hike in the quoted price. In the May 8 tender, the incremental adjustment over the 12 per cent norm has been allowed up to 13.5 per cent. The other major change relates to fumigation requirements. Earlier, it was necessary that the wheat cargo be fumigated with methyl bromide at 28 degree Celsius and above before export. Now, the exporter has the choice of fumigating by aluminium phosphide before export and subsequently use methyl bromide in-transit. This provision is helpful for countries such as the US, where methyl bromide is seen as an ozone-depleting substance and hence used only selectively at their ports. There are also a couple of other relaxations, including Bromus rigidus, an exotic weed seed, which is missing from the latest tender. The objective behind adopting more "flexible" quality specifications is said to be to facilitate wider exporter participation. The earlier tender was alleged to have unduly favoured Australian exporters. On March 8, Mr Mark Samson of US Wheat Associates had told Business Line that the then tender contract specifications were far too onerous because of which India was forced to pay a premium of $20 a tonne for the wheat it was procuring from Australian's monopoly wheat export body, AWB Ltd.
Related Stories: More Stories on : Wheat | Standards & Benchmarks | Exports & Imports
Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page
|
Stories in this Section |
|
The Hindu Group: Home | About Us | Copyright | Archives | Contacts | Subscription Group Sites: The Hindu | Business Line | Sportstar | Frontline | The Hindu eBooks | The Hindu Images | Home |
Copyright © 2006, The
Hindu Business Line. Republication or redissemination of the contents of
this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of
The Hindu Business Line
|