FM Arun Jaitley says govt to impose import duty of 10% on wheat

The goverment will impose an import duty of 10 per cent on wheat effective until March 31 next year,  Finance Minister Arun Jaitley told Parliament on Friday, reinstating tariffs after a gap of eight years following big purchases in recent months.

Reuters reported last week that a decision was taken after top officials from the ministries of agriculture, food, trade and finance met to discuss ways to curb overseas purchases when domestic stocks are ample.

In June some private firms signed deals to import 5,00,000 tonnes of high-protein Australian wheat in the biggest such purchases in more than a decade that led to criticism Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government was letting down farmers.

(Reuters)