NEW DELHI - The Indian government has banned onion exports till March 2024 and lifted import duties on yellow peas as it tries to bring down food prices, a hot-button issue that could hurt the reelection campaign of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
These moves follow its restrictions on the export of sugar and rice earlier in 2023.
Analysts said that the series of food export bans and exemptions rolled out by India, while having global reverberations, would continue until the general election, which is due by May 2024.
"Notably, inflation in key items within the food basket, such as pulses, cereals and spices, has persistently remained in double digits in recent months. The recent surge in prices of sugar and vegetables is a source of apprehension," said Mr Sarbartho Mukherjee, senior economist at credit rating agency CareEdge.
He said that regulating prices of food items ahead of the general election remained a key "imperative".
Inflation, led by high food prices, rose to a three-month high of 5.55 per cent in November.
The onion ban comes after the government in August slapped a 40 per cent export duty on onions to prevent prices spiking beyond 50 rupees (80 Singapore cents) a kilogram in the wholesale market.
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