India’s excessive reliance on a few agricultural commodities — rice, sugar, spices and oil meal — make it vulnerable in the wake of recent curbs imposed on some of the products, a report by economic think tank Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI) said.
It said that five products — basmati rice, non-basmati rice, sugar, spices, and oil meals — account for over 51% of the farm exports from the country.
Besides, India grapples with various domestic challenges, including infrastructural deficits, quality control issues, and non-tariff barriers, all of which impede the growth and competitiveness of the country’s agricultural sector, the report said.
“This makes them (agri exports) vulnerable to fluctuations in global prices and demand,” GTRI said, adding these commodities also face frequent export bans in India. Facing global supply problems, the government has banned the export of non-basmati rice, while also restricting the shipment of sugar from the country.