India Lifts Ban on Exporting Wheat Flour and Other Products

The Indian government has lifted restrictions on the export of wheat flour, maida, and semolina after four years. The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) issued a notification amending the export policy for these products.

Initially, the Centre imposed curbs on wheat exports in May 2022 to ensure domestic food security and control rising prices. Export restrictions were extended to wheat flour in August that year due to global demand for Indian wheat following the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

The government allowed some exceptions for specific wheat products, including the export of 25 lakh metric tonnes (LMT) of wheat and an additional 5 LMT of wheat products in February this year. The decision was made after India's total foodgrain production increased by 5.3 per cent to a record high of 376.563 million tonnes in 2025-26.

The revised export policy permits the free export of wheat or meslin flour (atta), maida, semolina (rava), wholemeal atta, and resultant atta without restrictions.