Piyush Goyal rules out lifting export curbs on wheat, rice, sugar

New Delhi, Jan 13: Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Saturday ruled out the lifting of the government ban on the export of wheat, rice and sugar.

"There is no proposal as of now to remove export restrictions on wheat, rice and sugar. India will not import wheat or sugar either," Goyal told media persons.

The government has banned the export of these essential food items to increase domestic availability and rein in prices which were adding to the inflationary spiral in the economy.

As per the official figures, released on Friday, India’s retail inflation rose to 5.69 per cent in December up from 5.55 per cent in November with higher food prices stretching household budgets.

The figures show that food inflation, which accounts for close to half of the overall consumer price index (CPI), shot up by 9.05 per cent from 8.657 per cent in November.

The prices of vegetables, pulses, spices and fruits rose sharply during the month. The prices of cereals such as rice and wheat have also gone up by 9.93 per cent while sugar turned costlier by over 7 per cent during the month, as per the official figures.