Plenty of gaps in food inflation control measures, complain industry bodies

They say some measures have spawned malpractices on the part of exporters, others have been partial to a certain section of traders

Alarmed by the sharp spike in retail inflation for April, which touched a near eight-year high of 7.79 per cent, the government announced a slew of measures in May to cool down prices, particularly those of food and fuel.

It first banned wheat exports, then exempted customs duty and the agri cess on import of 2 million tonnes of soybean and sunflower oil per year. Thereafter it capped sugar exports at 10 million tonnes and according to some reports, it is now even looking at curbing exports of wheat flour (atta) and other wheat items.

While these steps have had