When what was touted as the biggest global trade breakthrough in 20 years was scuttled last month by India's sole opposition, one of the points of contention was the country's insistence on stockpiling far more food than the World Trade Organisation (WTO) deemed necessary.
So it beggars belief for a new survey to report that 40 per cent of India's fresh food is wasted before it can be used. Inadequate storage facilities are blamed for an estimated 440 billion rupees (Dh26.74bn) of fresh produce being wasted each year, a figure that is doubly shocking because India's reserves of rice (21.2 million tonnes on July 1) and wheat (39.8 million tonnes) are more than double the government's buffer requirements for its food security policy.
This does not augur well for new prime minister Narendra Modi's vow to reform India's antiquated and inefficient economy, including its mammoth agricultural sector. Mr Modi reached his 100th day in office yesterday, prompting some analysts to seek signs that he is beginning to use his commanding electoral mandate to bring real change.
While the 100-day report card is more of a western media construct than a legitimate test and Mr Modi, along with most realistic analysts, says the reform process will take years rather than months, initial signs of whether he is actually putting his promises into action should be visible.
For this, it is worth parsing the WTO deal that lapsed on July 31 solely because of opposition from New Delhi. The deal was primarily beneficial to the developing world, including India, but would have cost New Delhi for what the WTO deemed anti-competitive behaviour about the way it buys produce at inflated prices from Indian farmers and for excessive stockpiling of food, much of which – as is now clear – ends up rotting.
Nobody expects that changing an economy with the size and inertia of India's would be easy but if Mr Modi cannot use his absolute majority in Parliament to make inroads, one wonders how it will ever occur. One hundred days is a very a short time, but we ought to be seeing some progress.
Food wastage puts spotlight on Modi
With a lapsed trade deal and food stockpiles rotting, people are questioning the new Indian PM’s resolve for reform.
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