India has permitted the shipment of 75,000 tonnes of non-basmati white rice to the UAE. Notably, non-basmati white rice exports were forbidden beginning on 20 July to regulate domestic pricing and guarantee food security at home.
The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said on Monday that the shipments to the UAE have been authorised through National Cooperative Shipments Limited, the Indian Media reports.
While revising the export regulations, the DGFT remained adamant that exports would only be permitted if other nations requested it to meet their demands for food security.
One of the major importers of Indian non-basmati rice is the West African nation of Benin. The UAE, Nepal, Bangladesh, China, the Ivory Coast, Togo, Senegal, Guinea, Vietnam, Djibouti, Madagascar, Cameroon, Somalia, Malaysia, and Liberia are other destinations.
India decided to permit rice exports last month to "meet the food security requirements" of Singapore.
Santosh Kumar Sarangi, the director general of foreign trade, recently informed the Indian media that on 21 July, India approved the export of 14,184 tonnes of rice to Bhutan and 300,000 tonnes of wheat to Nepal.
Additionally, through the National Cooperative Exports Ltd (NCEL), India is permitted to export non-basmati rice to Bhutan (79,000 tonnes), Mauritius (14,000 tonnes), and Singapore (50,000 tonnes).
Moreover, the Indian government permitted the shipment of broken rice to Senegal, Gambia, Indonesia, Mali, and Bhutan, with a combined total of 100,000 tonnes.
Export restrictions on wheat, non-basmati white rice, and broken rice were put into effect by the government in May, September, and July of the previous year, respectively, to increase domestic grain supplies.
Amid rising inflation and concerns about unpredictable monsoons, India banned the export of broken rice in September 2022, and imposed a 20% levy on exports of all other types of rice, except parboiled rice. Later, in November, the prohibition was lifted.