NAMAKKAL: Oman on Tuesday stopped issuing new import permits for Indian table eggs, hitting the poultry industry in Namakkal in Tamil Nadu. The new restriction assumes significance in the wake of Qatar imposing weight restrictions on Indian eggs recently.
KRN Rajeshkumar, DMK MP, raised the issue in Rajya Sabha on Tuesday. He urged the Centre to discuss with Oman and Qatar officials to resume egg imports from India. “I have requested meetings with the ambassadors of Oman and Qatar in India to discuss the challenges faced by poultry farmers and egg exporters,” he told TOI.
PV Senthil, an egg exporter from Namakkal and general secretary of Livestock and Agri-Farmers Trade Association (LIFT), said a large shipment of Indian eggs, worth at least Rs 15 crore, is currently stranded due to these restrictions. Importers in Oman are struggling to clear the Indian egg containers at Sohar port in Oman, and those still in transit.
According to exporters in Namakkal, the egg export business has significantly declined due to the actions of Oman and Qatar, the two key importing nations.
Namakkal egg exporters have been facing tough times since June when Oman stopped giving import permits for Indian table eggs. After several meetings at the consulate level, Oman resumed imports in Sept, but only with limited permits. On Tuesday, Oman again decided to stop issuing new import permits for Indian eggs.
Data from National Egg Coordination Committee (NECC) indicates that 11.4 crore eggs were exported to various countries, including Oman, Qatar, Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Muscat, the Maldives, and Sri Lanka at the start of the year, with Oman accounting for 50% of those exports. However, this number plummeted to just 2.6 crore by June.
An NECC official noted that the figure has fallen under a crore since June.