KARACHI, Jan 14: Already experiencing wheat and flour crises, consumers are soon going to face rice shortage owing to indifferent attitude of the government towards rapid rise in prices of all varieties, including coarse rice and Basmati and its unchecked exports.

Ever since new season began rice prices have been witnessing extra ordinary movement and in a short period prices increased many times.

Traders believe that a handful of big exporters having huge funds at their disposal from the banking channels are exporting ship load of rice. It is being alleged that these exporters are buying rice at higher prices and exporting at loss just to adjust the export refinance they have obtained under the export refinance scheme at concession.

Due to rapid rise in rice prices, small and medium exporters are being wiped out as they could not enter into any export commitment owing to volatile price situation.

However, the most disturbing factor is that the government had been indifferent ever since the new season began in November and paddy was lifted by a handful of middlemen and big exporters which created scarcity of the produce in the domestic market.

The soaring rice prices in the domestic market have hit the common man so badly that a good-quality rice (Basmati) which was being quoted at around Rs30 per kg have shot up to Rs60 to 70 per kg. Similarly, coarse rice which was widely consumed by lower-income people also scrambled to unprecedented level.

There is a strong demand from small and medium sized exporters that the government besides intervening should also impose Minimum Export Price (MEP), as was done by India to protect its consumers and also fetch higher price on export. All sort of coarse rice in India could not exported below $500 per ton.Zulfikar Thaver, president Union of Small and Medium Enterprise (Unisame) urged upon the government to fix MEP for coarse (Irri-6) at $475 per ton as big exporters are sending ship load of rice at low price of around $375 fob Karachi which was not only depriving the country from foreign exchange but was also creating a shortage in the domestic market, thus increasing the price.

He apprehended that if the government does not take pre-emptive measures at the earliest yet another commodity crisis would be in the offing.

Mr Thaver also asked the government to hold a meeting with stakeholders and find ways to overcome the situation which could worsen in the coming days.

He said the government should immediately assess the stocks of rice, its availability and only then they should allow further exports.

If needed, he said the government should immediately impose ban on export of non-basmati rice as the situation has already gone out of control and consumers are facing a lot of hardships in getting rice at a suitable price. The non-basmati rice, he added is equally important for animal feed.