Over 400 organic rice containers have been detained by Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) personnel in JNPT, Mundra and Kandla ports following businessline\u2019s <\/i>report of alleged irregularities in the shipments.<\/p>\n
Trade sources said non-organic white (raw) and parboiled (boiled) rice have been exported in the guise of organic rice. As a result, shipments of organic rice during April-July 2024-25 fiscal (1,46,585 tonnes) exceeded the total shipments during the previous fiscal (1,07,727 tonnes).<\/p>\n
These shipments (1,27,120 tonnes of white rice, 8,000-odd tonnes of broken rice) were made in violation of the ban on white (raw) and broken rice exports from India since July 2023. Unscrupulous shippers have also dodged the 20 per cent export duty on parboiled (boiled) rice.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\nVessel halted
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Trade sources, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said of the total shipments detained by the DRI, over 200 have been made in JNPT alone.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The sources said as per data 22,126 tonnes and 16,547 tonnes of organic rice shipments set sail for Vietnam and Kenya but hardly 2,,000 tonnes reached their destinations.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
A South India-based exporter said the Customs Department has stopped merchant vessel mv Della from setting sail on the issue of non-organic rice being shipped out as organic rice.\u00a0\u201cVietnam received less than 2,000 tonnes of organic rice shipments from India, while Kenya did not receive a single tonne of organic rice. In Kenya, the rice consignments have been recorded as non-organic rice. The Vietnam consignments seem to have been diverted elsewhere or misdeclaration has been made,\u201d a source with access to data said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\nOrigin Sikkim?
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These purchases were made at $491\/tonne by Vietnam and $475 by Kenya \u2014 at levels of non-organic white rice price quoted by competitive nations such as Pakistan and Myanmar.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As per data, last fiscal, Vietnam bought 34,152 tonnes at an average $466 a tonne last fiscal, when even non-organic white rice prices ruled over $500 last fiscal due to global shortage. Kenya did not import a single grain of organic rice last fiscal.\u00a0 \u201cThese are some interesting data that the Centre needs to probe,\u201d the source said.<\/p>\n
A South India-based exporter said some of these shipments were shipped out as rice grown in Sikkim, a fully organic State.\u00a0Sources said the Commerce Ministry officials called up two certification bodies, which certify a produce to be organic for exports \u2014 based in Sikkim and Jaipur, Rajasthan, and questioned them. Over two such certification agencies are involved, they said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\u2018Fly-by-night\u2019 operators
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Another South India-based exporter said these exports have been made by \u201cfly-by-night\u201d operators. \u201cWe were approached to ship out non-organic white rice as organic rice but we refused,\u201d the exporter said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The source with data said preliminary information suggests that the documents for the \u201cfake\u201d organic rice shipments \u201coriginated\u201d from Bihar and Odisha.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The source said many in the trade wonder how officials of the Customs Department allowed the shipments. \u201cBut you have to bear in mind that Customs officials go by Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (Apeda\u2019s) provisional transaction certificates (TCs). Did anyone in Apeda check if the final TCs conformed to the volume of shipments?\u201d the source asked.<\/p>\n
\nTRACENET access
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Other trading sources said though some may question the Customs officials checking parboiled shipments to ensure white rice was not shipped out through \u201cmisdeclaration\u201d, it was done as no such certification is involved.\u00a0 \u201cCustoms officials did not permit steamed and idly rice too as it did not treat them as parboiled rice. How can Customs check when large volumes are cleared by Apeda?\u201d a second trading source said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The source said Customs officials cannot access Apeda\u2019s Tracenet which can provide details of the TCs issued. \u201cTracenet has provisions to show only final TCs. That could have been a handicap for the Customs. Apeda too has provisions to check only final TCs,\u201d the source said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Centre should come up with provisions to link TRACENET and ICEGATE to prevent such \u201cillegal\u201d shipments, trading sources said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\nPrime face evidence
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Trade sources said the government authorities, including DRI and Apeda, swung into action within hours of businessline<\/i>\u2019s report that there was \u201csomething fishy\u201d over the exports of organic rice from the country.\u00a0<\/p>\n
They said there has been prima facie evidence, based on data, and this is being supported by details from Vietnam and Kenya.<\/p>\n
Some exporters allegedly resorted to the irregularities in export of organic rice from Kandla, Mundra and JNPT ports after Chennai and Tuticorin Custom officials cracked down following a businessline<\/i> report that white rice exports were being under-invoiced.<\/p>\n
The Centre began curbing rice exports from September 2022 as production in key-growing regions was affected by prolonged dry periods and deficient rainfall.\u00a0<\/p>\n