To rein in rising prices of edible oil and oilseeds in the domestic market, the Government has imposed stock limit norms on these commodities till March 31, 2022. The states however have been given the freedom to decide the stock limits depending on their consumption patterns, a notification issued by the Ministry of Consumer Affairs said.
Exporters and importers of edible oil have been exempted from the stock limit though it is subject to certain conditions which are to be met by them, the notification said further.
The government took the decision as the prices of the two commodities had not come down despite imposing duty cuts. It had also taken measures like directing oil millers and stock holders to disclose their stocks, so that prices could be controlled.
Interestingly just two days back, the ministry had issued a statement saying that edible oil prices had come down by around 3 per cent to 8 per cent apart from mustard oil.
Now according to the latest direction, those exporters - if they are refiners, millers, extractors, wholesalers or retailers – and have importer-exporter code number, will be exempted from maintain stock limits, if they are able to prove that the whole or part of their stocks are meant for exports.
In the same manner, those importers – if they are refiners, millers, extractors, wholesalers or retailers – will be exempted from maintaining stock limits, if they are able to prove that part of their stock is sourced from imports.
However if it is found that stocks maintained by these exporters and importers are higher than the prescribed limits, then they will have to disclose the quantity on the government's portal within 30 days of the issuance of the notification, and bring them back to the prescribed limits.
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