KARACHI, Jan 12: Exporters claim that prices of basmati and non-basmati rice have increased by around 23 and 30 per cent, respectively, owing to government intervention in rice purchase through Trading Corporation of Pakistan and Pakistan Agriculture Storage and Services Corporation.

Rice trade has come to standstill after becoming highly risky, and about 70 per cent of leading rice mills in the Punjab are presently not working and the same situation may develop in Sindh, exporters claimed.

The Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan is seeking a meeting with the prime minister to apprise him of the situation.

The association claims that the TCP and Passco were offering bids at much higher prices than the prevailing market rates, and it was harming export trade.

Rice exporters are losing heavily due to rising prices in the market and this is also resulting in the closure of mills, the association claimed.

The ultimate beneficiary would be India which has already entered Saudi Arabian market at our cost, the association said.

Pakistan once had 54 per cent share in Saudi rice market which has now declined to less than 10 per cent because exporters are unable to export parboil rice which is in great demand in Saudi Arabia. The association members have lately set up parboiled plants which are run on gas and can fully meet Saudi market demand. However, owing to shortage of gas, these plants are no more functioning and exporters apprehend that they may urther lose the Saudi market.

The association said that it has no objection to government support to growers, but this support should be timely during July-August period when paddy reaches market.

The rice exporters body feels that the government should give direct subsidy to growers through lower rates of urea, DAP and seeds.

It further stated that commodity markets worldwide are experiencing ups and downs, and this year due to international bumper crop, prices have come down. Therefore, Pakistan is no exception. Last year when prices of rice had increased manifold, the government took the association into confidence and the matter was amicably resolved.

The exporters’ body apprehended that if no corrective measures are taken and TCP and Passco are not stopped from procurement of rice, many more rice processing mills would close down and it may result in unemployment of up to 500,000 people who are directly or indirectly attached with rice export trade.

The association has also demanded that basmati trade mark should be registered by government agency, like TDAP and it should be the property of Pakistan and not of any individual or trade body.

It also feels that with rising export of rice, there is now greater need to have a separate ministry for rice because when rice export was privatised in 1989 it fetched $300 million only but now it has gone up to $2.2 billion in last fiscal year.