New Delhi, April 22
China has finally permitted the import of Indian basmati into its markets in a move that is expected to marginally reduce the yawning bilateral trade imbalance in China’s favour.

Officials said a notification in this regard was issued by the Chinese authorities to traders earlier this week.

In recent months, India had raised with China its concerns on the ban on imports of agricultural products, including basmati rice, fruits and vegetables, arguing that there was not "sufficient scientific evidences" in support of such a step.

''The issue of market access for Indian agricultural products has consistently been taken up with the Chinese authorities,'' they added.

The two countries are believed to have amicably settled the issues of pest control and monitoring of quarantine pests in processing and storage houses in India. Standard Operating Procedures to ensure that processing and storage houses were free from pests, as requested by China, had already been submitted to the Chinese side in 2010.

Basmati had been exported earlier to China through informal channels but the latest move will help curb India’s trade barriers with its neighbour. India had exported 54 tonne basmati to China in 2006-07 on a trial basis.

India is looking at China, Mexico and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) as new markets for its basmati rice, with a view to expand its share of global trade.

The country’s share of the global market for basmati rice is nearly 60%, while Pakistan accounts for the remaining 40%. This high quality rice is mainly grown in these two countries.

In India, it is grown mainly in Punjab, Haryana, UP and Uttarakhand. Annual production now stands at around 4.5 MT. It fetches about $1,100 per tonne in the global market.

Indian basmati is sold to over 100 countries, including the US, UK, UAE, Iran, Kuwait and Europe. Traders say India’s exports of basmati are increasing by 20 to 30% every year. Indian basmati is said to be better than Pakistani rice in taste and flavour.