Punjab flood to hit Indian basmati rice output, exporters may realise more

Punjab will likely see at least 20-25 per cent drop in basmati production this year due to heavy rain and floods, potentially increasing exporters’ realisation as global supplies will be limited.

Punjab has around 40 per cent share in India’s Basmati rice export of 6.07 million tonne (mt) in 2024-25.

“The rain is continuing, so it would be hazardous to guess how extensive the damage to crops, lives, cattle and houses is,” said Ashok Sethi, Director of Punjab Rice Millers and Exporters Association. Industry sources said that preliminary reports indicate the basmati crop has been affected in about 1.5 lakh acres.

Speaking to Businessline, Punjab’s Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian said: “About 6 lakh acres (or 2.5 lakh hectares) crop area has been impacted due to heavy rain and floods. Major affected crops include both basmati and non-basmati as well as cotton.”

The worst-affected districts are Gurdaspur, Pathankot, Fazilka, Kapurthala, Tarn Taran, Ferozepur, Hoshiarpur and Amritsar. These eight districts have a combined share of over 52 per cent in the State’s Basmati rice area and production as per APEDA’s survey in 2023. Punjab had produced 3.84 mt of Basmati rice in an area of 8.12 lakh hectare (lh) during Kharif 2023.

Khudian said the State government has been providing relief, including medical aid as well as fodder for cattle. Since several villages are still inundated with water, any assessment about crop damage will take more time, the minister added.

This kharif season, Punjab’s total crop area was 35.52 lh as of August 29, including 32.49 lh under both basmati and non-basmati rice. The coverage under other crops includes 1.19 lh under cotton, 0.95 lh under sugarcane and 0.86 lh under maize.

Reviewing the crop conditions in flood-hit states, Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said on Monday that he would soon visit Punjab to meet the affected farmers. “The farmers of Punjab should not worry at all, the Central government stands with the affected farmers in this hour of natural disaster,” Chouhan said.

Meanwhile, exporters are hopeful of higher realisation this year due to a lower output from last year’s estimated 4 mt. Besides, the Basmati crop has also been damaged in Pakistan, the only other country where the aromatic rice is grown, also due to floods.

In terms of export realisation, Basmati exporters on an average had received $980/tonne in 2024-25. Before the floods affected the crop, exporters were contracting an average $900-1,000/tonne, which may jump to at least $ 1,050/tonne very soon, trade sources said.

Tags: Basmati rice, Production, India, crop, Punjab, floods, rain, export, non-basmati rice